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SEMI-ANNUAL
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OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST
OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
Held in the Tabernacle
Salt Lake City, Utah
S&pbmJb&A. 29, 30, and.
Odtoboh. 1, 1950
With Report of Discourses
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Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Salt Lake City, Utah
Printed in the United States of America
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"THE ENIGMA OF PALMYRA"
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The One Hundred Twenty-first Semi-Annual
Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints
The One Hundred Twenty-first Semi-Annual Conference of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints convened in the
Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Utah, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday,
September 29, 30 and October 1, 1950.
General sessions of the Conference were held at 10:00 a.m. and
2:00 p.m., Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and the General Priesthood
meeting convened in the Tabernacle Saturday evening, September 30,
at 7:00.
The proceedings of the general sessions were broadcast over
Station KSL, and by arrangement through KSL over the following
stations:
In Utah: KSUB at Cedar City, KVNU at Logan, KSVC at
Richfield, KJAM at Vernal.
In Idaho: KGEM at Boise, KID at Idaho Falls, KEYY at
Pocatello, KVMV at Twin Falls, (Friday and Saturday morning
and Sunday afternoon sessions) and KBlO at Burley (Friday and
Sunday sessions ) .
In Oregon: The morning sessions over KSRV at Ontario, and
the Sunday sessions over KLBM at LaGrande.
In Arizona: By transcription over KTYL at Mesa.
In Colorado: By direct line and transcription over KEXO at
Grand Junction.
The services of the general sessions were also televised over
KSL television station, channel 5.
All general sessions of the Conference and the General Priest-
hood meeting were broadcast in the Assembly Hall, just south of
the Tabernacle, on the Tabernacle grounds, and in Barratt Hall
(60 North Main) over a loud speaking system and by television.
In addition, many who could not find accommodation in any one of
these buildings assembled on the Tabernacle grounds and listened
to the services as they were broadcast from the Tabernacle, by means
of amplifying equipment.
President George Albert Smith was present and presided at
each of the general meetings. He conducted the services at the
Friday morning, Sunday morning, and Sunday afternoon sessions,
also the General Priesthood meeting. President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.,
First Counselor in the First Presidency, conducted the Friday after-
noon and Saturday afternoon sessions. President David O. McKay
conducted the Saturday morning meeting.
Included in this report of the Conference is also a report of
2 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday. September 29 First Day
Columbia Broadcasting Company's Church of the Air Broadcast,
Sunday morning from 8:30 to 9:00, and the Tabernacle Choir and
Organ Broadcast from 9:00 to 9:30 a.m.
General Authorities of the Church Present
The First Presidency: George Albert Smith, J. Reuben Clark,
Jr., and David O. McKay.
Of The Council of the Twelve Apostles: * Joseph Fielding
Smith, **, John A. Widtsoe, Joseph F. Merrill, Albert E. Bowen,
Harold B. Lee, Spencer W. Kimball, Ezra Taft Benson, Mark E.
Petersen, Matthew Cowley, Henry D. Moyle, Delbert Leon
Stapley.***
Patriarch to the Church: Eldred G. Smith.
Assistants to the Council of the Twelve Apostles: Marion G.
Romney, Thomas E. McKay, Clifford E. Young, and Alma Sonne.
The First Council of the Seventy: Levi Edgar Young, Antoine
R. Ivins, Richard L. Evans, Oscar A. Kirkham, **** , Milton R.
Hunter, and Bruce R. McConkie.
The Presiding Bishopric: LeGrand Richards, Joseph L. Wirth-
lin, and Thorpe B. Isaacson.
General Officers and Other Authorities Present
Church Historian and Recorder: Joseph Fielding Smith, and A.
William Lund, Assistant.
Members of General Welfare Committee, Church Welfare
Program..
Members of the General Board of Education, Commissioner of
Education, Seminary Supervisors, and Directors and associate Di-
rectors of Institutes.
Presidents of Stakes and their Counselors, Bishops of Wards
and their Counselors, Presidents of Temples, Patriarchs, High
Priests, Seventies, Elders; General, Stake and Ward officers of
Auxiliary Associations, etc., from all parts of the Church.
* President George F. Richards, of the Council of the Twelve, passed away
August 8, 1950.
** Stephen L Richards was absent, visiting missions in Europe.
* "Delbert Leon Stapley was sustained at this conference as a member of the
Council of the Twelve Apostles, to fill the vacancy caused by the death
of President George F. Richards.
****S. Dilworth Young was absent, presiding over the New England Mission.
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 3
FIRST DAY
MORNING MEETING
The Conference commenced Friday morning, September 29, at
10 o'clock, with President George Albert Smith presiding and con-
ducting the services of the first session.
President George Albert Smith:
We welcome you to the One Hundred Twenty-first Semi-An-
nual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
We are glad to see so many of you here. We hope that those who
have not seats will be able to crowd in so that no one will be com-
pelled to stand.
This is the opening session of the One Hundred Twenty-first
Semi-Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
day Saints. We are convened in the Tabernacle on Temple Square
in Salt Lake City, Utah.
All the General Authorities of the Church are in attendance
except Elder Stephen L Richards, of the Council of the Twelve,
who is visiting the European Missions, and President S. Dilworth
Young who is presiding over the New England Mission.
Elder Joseph Anderson is the Clerk of the Conference.
These services, and all general sessions of the Conference, will
be broadcast in the Assembly Hall and in Barratt Hall, 60 North
Main Street, over a loud speaking system and by television.
This service, and all general sessions of the Conference, will be
broadcast over Station KSL, Salt Lake City, and by arrangement
through KSL, over the following Stations: in Utah: KSUB at Cedar
City, KVNU at Logan, KSUB at Richfield, KJAM at Vernal; in Ida-
ho: KGEM at Boise, KID at Idaho Falls, KEYY at Pocatello, KV-
MV at Twin Falls Friday and Saturday morning and Sunday after-
noon sessions, and the Friday and Sunday sessions over KBIO at
Burley; in Oregon: the morning sessions over KSRV at Ontario, and
the Sunday sessions over KLBM at LaGrande; by transcription over
KTYL at Mesa, Arizona; and by direct line and transcription over
KEXO at Grand Junction, Colorado.
We are very grateful to the stations named for their coopera-
tion in broadcasting the proceedings of this Conference. We thank
them for their service, which will continue throughout the Confer-
ence. In the interest of time we shall not repeat this announcement
at every session.
All general sessions will also be televised over the KSL tele-
vision station, channel five.
The choir singing for this morning's session will be by the
Combined Chorus of Singing Mothers from the Cache Region and
4 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Day
Salt Lake City Stakes, with Sister Florence Jepperson Madsen con-
ducting and with Elder Frank W. Asper at the Organ.
We will begin this service by the Relief Society Singing Moth-
ers singing "The Lord Is My Shepherd."
The opening prayer will be offered by President Delbert F.
Wright, Oakland Stake, California.
The Relief Society Singing Mothers sang the hymn "The Lord
Is My Shepherd."
President Delbert F. Wright of the Oakland Stake offered the
invocation.
The Relief Society Singing Mothers sang "Unto Thee I Lift
Mine Eyes."
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH
This is a beautiful picture this morning, to see the Lord's house
filled with his children who have come here to worship. Since our
last conference many things have occurred. While our Singing
Mothers were singing, I thought of one of our brothers who went to
the South Seas with me about thirteen years ago. When we ar-
rived at British Samoa, the people were having a holiday. We had
been persuaded to stay aboard the boat at night because it could
not go around the reef, and we could not land in small boats in the
dark. We were told that the people wanted to give us a welcome,
so there was nothing else for us to do. We could not wade it, so
we had to wait until they took us in.
Welcome in Apia
The boat anchored, and the next morning out came a war canoe
all decorated and rowed by great husky men, one oar to a man, and
there were fifteen oarsmen including the captain. They had per-
suaded us to wait because they said they wanted to give us a royal
welcome, and when we arrived, it was a real welcome. Everybody
was out, apparently. People were all along the shore. Among them
was a group of women, more than a hundred, all dressed in light-
colored dresses of tapa cloth made from the bark of the mulberry
tree. They had made them themselves for that occasion.
When I saw this group of Singing Mothers all dressed alike
this morning, my mind went back to Apia and Brother Rufus K.
Hardy who was with me on that trip. He has been gone a long
time.
Those Singing Mothers sang beautifully at our meetings and at
such celebrations as they had, as our sisters have sung this morning.
And since that time I have heard the Singing Mothers in many
places, but I think I have never been more impressed with them than
I was there in the islands.
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 5
Brethren Who Have Gone
Our first meeting was in the open air, and there were between
two and three thousand people whom the Singing Mothers enter-
tained. But the thought that came into my mind is that Brother Hardy
is gone. He has finished his work. Since our last conference Presi-
dent George F. Richards of the Council of the Twelve has finished
his mission and has gone to find his reward. I miss these brethren.
I am glad that Brother Thomas E. McKay is here this morning.
He has had a long siege of illness. I am sure that Brother Stephen
L Richards and those with him are having a real experience. In all
probability they are in the vicinity of Jerusalem today.
Joy of Conference Meetings
It is a joy to come to one of these conference meetings and meet
people not only from all sections of the United States, but also
from other parts of the world. It is one of the greatest gatherings
of religious people that meet anywhere in the world, and you will
find no other such place in all the world dedicated to the Lord for
worship.
I would like us all to remember that this is the Lord's house.
You will find no other place in all the world dedicated to the Lord
that gathers together a congregation such as is here this morning,
many of whom have come thousands of miles, not to see and be
seen, but to wait upon the Lord. And he has promised us that if
even two or three shall meet together in his name, he will be there
to bless them.
This morning, that we may claim our blessings, there are ap-
proximately ten thousand here in the Tabernacle and in the As-
sembly Hall — all at worship. There are thousands more enjoying
the conference by means of radio and television. We are here in
the name of the Redeemer of mankind, and I am sure when we go
from this conference back to our homes, we will have an intense
desire to live the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the only gospel
that is the power of God unto salvation in the celestial kingdom.
Observance of Commandments
This morning, brethren and sisters, I congratulate you: Not
that you are here, but that you are here to worship. What a priv-
ilege it is to worship the Lord and to do it in the way he has indi-
cated. There are some people who are members of the Church —
their names are on the record, and they have an idea that that is all
that is necessary — but the time will come when they will have to
face their record, and their admission into the celestial kingdom will
be conditioned upon the way they have observed the advice of our
Heavenly Father right here upon earth. How grateful we ought
to be, not to be uncertain as to where we are going.
6 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Day
I had a man say to me one day after I had taught the gospel
to him for an hour or so on a train, "I'd give a lot to have the as-
surance that you have." And I replied: "You do not have to give
anything to have the assurance that I have except to keep the com-
mandments of the Lord. If you do that, you will know that the gos-
pel of Jesus Christ is on earth. You will know that the authority
of the priesthood is on earth."
How beautiful it is to realize that men who are worthy may
receive that priesthood, and in the authority that is given them, do
so many things that are a blessing to our Father's other children.
Faith Grows With Righteousness
Within the week, I listened to one of the brethren who has just
returned from the mission field. He has been out nearly five years,
and he told of some of the experiences in the field. He told of peo-
ple that had illness and the doctors did everything they could for
them, but they could not heal them. But the humble missionaries,
the humble men who held the priesthood, placed their hands upon
the heads of those who were afflicted and rebuked their ailments,
and they were healed.
That would not occur without faith, and our faith is conditioned
upon our righteous lives. We cannot live improperly and have faith
as we should, but if we keep the commandments of the Lord, we
can have faith, and it will grow and increase as our righteousness
increases.
Political Campaign
I am happy to be here with you, my brothers and sisters, in
the Lord's house to wait upon him. We are right now in the midst
of a political campaign here in America. It ought to be a source
of education to the people. It ought to inspire men and women to
choose for their officers in the various sections of the country, par-
ticularly in the nation, men and women who believe in God. That
is their privilege, but unfortunately so many times people become
allied with a group, and they insist on everybody supporting the in-
dividual that they support, and the result is a campaign of bitterness.
Brethren and sisters, you have your agency; you do not have to
be angry with your brother and your sister because they do not see
as you do. We are not supposed to criticize and find fault with
the members of the Catholic Church, the Presbyterian Church, the
Methodist Church, because they cannot understand all of the gospel.
I think it is fine to encourage them to understand all that they
have and then add to it. Now if that is true in regard to our re-
ligious belief, surely we will not lose our way during a political cam-
paign, and cultivate anger and displeasure and hatred for those who
do not believe as we do.
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 7
Constitution of the United States
And that brings me to something that is frequently on my mind.
No nation in the world has a constitution that was given to it by
our Heavenly Father except the United States of America. I won-
der if we appreciate that. The Lord gave us a rule of life for this
great nation, and as far as we have lived up to it and taken ad-
vantage of it, the nation has grown, and the people have been
blessed. But there are many people who prefer, or at least they
seem to prefer, something else.
As one man said to me, "Why not try what Russia has tried
and Germany has tried?" And my answer to him was, "Why try
something that has already failed? Why not hold on to what the
Lord has given?" The Constitution of the United States was writ-
ten, it is true, by men, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and
others who were their associates, but we have in this book that I
have in my hand, the book of Doctrine and Covenants, a revela-
tion in which the Lord tells us that the Constitution of the United
States was prepared by men raised up by him for this very purpose.
As Latter-day Saints we ought to know that there is nothing
better anywhere else. And so we should cleave to the Constitution
of the United States and in doing so, earn the blessings of our
Heavenly Father.
Observance of Ten Commandments
It was a long time ago that the Lord gave to Moses the Ten
Commandments. If the people of the world had observed the Ten
Commandments from that time until now, we would have a different
world. There would be millions of people who would live longer
than they have lived and be happier. The Ten Commandments are
in force today, and if we are good Latter-day Saints and are ob-
serving what the Lord has advised, among other things, we will
honor the Sabbath day and not make it a day of pleasure. The Con-
stitution guarantees us liberty that no other nation enjoys. Most
of the nations are losing the liberties they have had because they
have not kept the commandments of the Lord.
Most of the difficulty is the bid that is made by the leadership
of nations to people that if they will follow the plan that the leaders
map out, they will be fed and clothed without having to work so
hard for it, but it does not work. People are being misled with the
idea that they can get something for nothing and are not encour-
aged to work for what they need and desire.
Brothers and sisters, you are approaching a political campaign.
Go to the Lord in prayer. Seek his guidance. We do not want
to turn this nation over to the folly of the teachings of other na-
tions that have failed. What we should do is to cling to what we
have, and it is wonderful what the Lord has given to us in this nation.
Now it does not make any difference to me what a man's poli-
8
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday. September 29 First Day
tics is; as long as he observes the advice of our Heavenly Father, he
will be a safe companion and associate. We should not lose our
tempers and abuse one another. I want to say that nobody ever
abused anybody else when he had the spirit of the Lord. It is al-
ways when we have some other spirit.
Seek the Lord
Seek the Lord, brothers and sisters. We do not have to live
as they are living in many other parts of the world. We can con-
tinue to live under the influence of the Spirit of the Lord and worship.
One of the most populous nations in all the world restricts the peo-
ple in their worship. They cannot worship as we do here, and yet
there are many people in our land who would like to try what they
are doing over there because they want something different.
I hold in my hand a copy of the Doctrine and Covenants, and
in it the Lords tells us another thing, to pray for and sustain the
Constitution of the land and those who represent us in its offices.
So, pray for the President of the United States, pray for those who
have been elected to Congress, pray for your governor and the mem-
bers of your legislature. If they have the Spirit of the Lord, they
cannot go wrong; but without it they can go a long way on the by-
path.
Hawaiian Centennial
Here we are this morning, on a beautiful day. No people could
be more comfortable in worship than we are this morning. I am so
grateful that I am able to be present. Recently I, with a group of
my brothers and sisters, went to Hawaii to celebrate the centennial
of preaching the gospel in the Hawaiian Islands. Some of our party
expected to find most of the people Hawaiian. But it was found
there were Hawaiians, Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, Samoans, and
several other nations I might name, all living there at peace. When
our meeting was held in a large building, all of those races were
there as members of the Church.
Gospel For All People
The gospel of Jesus Christ is not just for us. It is for the peo-
ple of the world, all our Father's children, and at the present time we
have over 5800 missionaries out in the world, from this little Church.
What for? To go to all these people and say, "Keep all the good
things that you have, keep all that God has given you that enriches
your life, and then let us share something with you that will add to
your happiness and increase your satisfaction." That is the spirit
of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our happiness is conditioned upon
our loving our fellow men, all of whom are children of our Heavenly
Father.
ELDER JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH 9
Right here on this block is one of the greatest missionary fields
in the world. I see a man sitting down here in the audience who
spends much of his time with the people on this block. He is a won-
derful missionary and just as happy as he can be when he is talking
about it. When we are doing missionary work to bless the people,
we are doing it under the influence of the Lord, and we are sure to
be happy.
Spirit of Prayer and Gratitude
We welcome you all here this morning. Let us all come into
this house, into the houses that may be necessary to be used for the
conference, with a spirit of prayer, the spirit of gratitude. Let us
appeal to the Lord to bless us, and then those who address us will
be inspired. I pray that we may all live in such a way that our
Heavenly Father can have us in his keeping, that we may have joy
and satisfaction, and we will have if we have this Spirit.
I pray that his peace may be with us during the continuance of
this meeting and the other meetings of the conference, that we may
meet with a feeling of gratitude for all our blessings. And when the
conference is concluded, and we return to our homes, may we do so
with the appreciation of the fact that we did wait upon the Lord and
that he fulfilled his promise and was with us to bless us. I pray that
we may be filled with that spirit that comes from him, and that is a
spirit of love, of kindness and helpfulness and of patience and for-
bearance. Then, if we keep that spirit with us in our homes, our boys
and girls will grow up to be what we would like them to be.
That the Lord may add his blessing, I humbly pray in the name
of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
President George Albert Smith says that this is a wonderful
sight. To that I agree. It gives me great pleasure to look into the
faces of men and women whose lives are clean; who have faith in
God; who have made covenants to serve. President Smith further
says that salvation comes through the keeping of the commandments
of God. We do not believe that salvation comes from lip service,
merely a confession with our lips that Jesus is the Christ. It comes
through obedience to every principle and eternal truth pertaining
to our exaltation. Let me read to you words of the Lord given to
his disciples on this continent as he stood in their presence.
And it shall come to pass, that whoso repenteth and is baptized in
my name shall be filled; and if he endureth to the end, behold, him will
I hold guiltless before my Father at that day when I shall stand to judge
the world.
And he that endureth not unto the end, the same is he that is also
10 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Day
hewn down and cast into the fire, from whence they can no more return,
because of the justice of the Father.
And this is the word which he hath given unto the children of men.
And for this cause he fulfllleth the words which he hath given, and he
lieth not, but fulfllleth all his words.
And no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom; therefore nothing
entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed their garments in
my blood, because of their faith, and the repentance of all their sins,
and their faithfulness unto the end.
These words that I have read to you are from the twenty-sev-
enth chapter of III Nephi, verses 16-19 inclusive.
Lamb's Book of Life
One of my great sorrows is that so many members of the Church
fail to recognize this truth which I have read. We are not going
to be saved in the kingdom of God just because our names are on
the records of the Church. It will require more than that. We
will have to have our names written in the Lamb's Book of Life,
and if they are written in the Lamb's book of Life then it is an evi-
dence we have kept the commandments. Every soul who will not
keep those commandments shall have his name blotted out of that
book.
World Rejects Blessings
I am exceedingly grateful this morning for the knowledge which
I have, limited as it is, of the gospel of Jesus Christ; of the things
that have been revealed for our salvation; for the opportunities which
come to us to give service to the Church and to our fellow men. We
have so many blessings that the world does not have. The world
could have them, but it will not. As the Savior said, speaking par-
ticularly of the Jews, many a time would he have gathered them as
a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, but they would not.
I wish that every honest soul in this world would read the Book
of Mormon; would read the Doctrine and Covenants; the Pearl of
Great Price, besides reading the Bible. What a glorious privilege
is ours. The so-called Christian world, divided and subdivided,
maintains that the Bible contains all of the word of God. To them
the Lord has never given a revelation. According to its teachings
nothing has come from the heavens by way of counsel and advice
or revelation, comparable to that which we find in what they are
pleased to call the canon of scripture.
Not long ago, as I was on the train coming home, a minister
said to me that the Book of Mormon was a fraud because in the last
chapter of the book of Revelation the Lord so declared it. Let me
read those words.
And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this
prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out
of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
(Rev. 22:19.)
*
ELDER JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH 11
I said to him, "My good friend, don't you know that when
that was written we had no Bible?" This Bible was not compiled as
we have it when that was written. That has reference merely to
this Book of Revelation. Then he was sorry that he had spoken.
Well, all they have is what is contained in this book (the Bible),
this record that closed nearly two thousand years ago.
Advantages Enjoyed
See the advantage, brethren and sisters, that we have. Not only
do we have the revelations given to the prophets of ancient Israel,
given by our Savior when he was on the earth and by his disciples
in that first century, but the Lord has continued to speak; he has
given many revelations to others. We have them. We are blessed
with the Book of Mormon which contains the principles of the gos-
pel so clearly stated, that we do not stumble over them. We have
the Doctrine and Covenants, which is our book particularly, con-
taining the revelations given to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
day Saints and to all the world if it will have them. This book
isn't just for us, but we have it. The world won't have it. See
what it could have if it would. It could have information, knowledge
and wisdom pertaining to the salvation of men, that can't be found
in the Bible. I have said, and I think I am right, that there isn't
one principle pertaining to the salvation of men that is so clearly
stated in the Bible, as it has come down to us, that men do not
stumble over — not one thing. There is not one principle they can be
united on that has been so clearly stated that they don't find their
interpretations of it conflicting.
The Vision
Do you want to know about the resurrection of the dead? Who
is going to be saved in the celestial kingdom of God? Then read
your Book of Mormon. Read your Doctrine and Covenants. The
seventy-sixth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, known as The
Vision, is the clearest, most concise statement regarding salvation
that I know anything about, and I doubt if the Lord ever gave to
any people at any time upon the face of the earth anything clearer
than this revelation. Do the people of the world know where they
are going when they die? No. They sing about a beautiful isle
of somewhere. They don't know. Can they find out in the Bible?
Yes, we can find it. They could find it if they had the right inspira-
tion, but with the added help that we obtain from the records the
Lord has given us. we don't stumble over that. We don't stumble
over baptism and how it should be performed and by whom. We
have a clear and perfect understanding of the nature of God. Now,
I can find that in the Bible; so can you. So can they, if they would
search for it in the spirit of faith; but they stumble over it; and yet
they are not willing to accept the revelations of the Lord given in
12 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Day
the day and dispensation in which they live that would set forth
clearly to them all these principles of eternal truth. How greatly
are we blessed!
Book of Mormon
Then I have this regret, that so many members of the Church
do not avail themselves of this information. The Lord was kind
enough and so deeply concerned in the matter that he sent an angel
from his presence to reveal the Book of Mormon. For ages he pre-
pared the Book of Mormon that it might come forth to the con-
vincing, it says, of both Jew and Gentile and the remnant upon this
land, that Jesus is the Christ. It was to come forth in a day when
men would be denying the Christ. Isn't that true? Is not the world
today getting farther and farther away from a knowledge concern-
ing the Son of God? Are not the peoples of the earth beginning,
if they have not already reached the point, to deny the literal resur-
rection of the body and are questioning the resurrection of the Lord
himself and his godhood? The Book of Mormon said that would
be the case and that it was to come forth as a testimony, as a wit-
ness to men that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Redeemer of
the World, and that men will be saved and exalted in the kingdom
of God by keeping their hearts pure and obeying all of his com-
mandments. These things the Lord has impressed upon us.
Covenant at Baptism
In conclusion let me read the covenant we make when we are
baptized and come into this Church.
All those who humble themselves before God and desire to be bap-
tized, and come forth with broken hearts and contrite spirits, and witness
before the church that they have truly repented of all their sins, and are
willing to take upon them the name of Jesus Christ, having a determina-
tion to serve him to the end, and truly manifest by their works that they
have received of the spirit of Christ unto the remission of their sins, shall
be received by baptism into his church. (D. & C. 20:37.)
What do you get out of that? I get this: that every soul bap-
tized, truly baptized, has humbled himself; his heart is broken; his
spirit is contrite; he has made a covenant before God that he will
keep his commandments, and he has forsaken all his sins. Then
after he gets into the Church, is it his privilege to sin after he is
in? Can he let down? Can he indulge in some of the things which
the Lord has said he should avoid? No. It is just as necessary that
he have that contrite spirit, that broken heart, after he is baptized
as it is before.
Power to Reach Members
Oh, I wish we had the power, we who hold the priesthood, to
reach every soul who is not faithful, who is not humbled in his heart
ELDER BRUCE R. McCONKIE
13
— members of this Church — that we might bring them back to a full
understanding of the gospel. Is it true that some among us have
an idea that it matters not that we sin so long as it is not a grievous
sin, a deadly sin, that we will yet be saved in the kingdom of God?
Nephi saw our day. He said that people would be saying that. But
I say unto you, we cannot turn away from the path of truth and
righteousness and retain the guidance of the Spirit of the Lord.
May the Lord bless the Latter-day Saints. May he bless all
people. Oh, I wish that we would all humble ourselves and seek the
truth which the Lord has declared to us by his own word in this day
in which we live. The Lord bless us all, help us to be true and faith-
ful and keep his commandments, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.
The Relief Society Singing Mothers and the congregation
joined in singing the hymn, "O Ye Mountains High," J. Spencer
Cornwall conducting.
ELDER BRUCE R. McCONKIE
Of the First Council of the Seventy
President George Albert Smith said this morning that it was
not enough for people to have their names on the records of the
Church in order to be saved in the kingdom of God, but that it was
necessary to keep the commandments.
Then Elder Joseph Fielding Smith said the same thing and read
to us the covenant of baptism, that is the covenant which we take in
the waters of baptism.
A Covenant People
We are a covenant-making and a covenant-taking people. We
have the gospel which is the new and the everlasting covenant: new
in that the Lord has revealed it anew in our day; everlasting in that
its principles are eternal, have existed with God from all eternity, and
are the same unchangeable laws by which all men in all ages may be
saved. The gospel is the covenant which God makes with his chil-
dren here on earth that he will return them to his presence and give
them eternal life, if they will walk in the paths of truth and righteous-
ness while here.
We are children of the covenant which God made with Abra-
ham, our father. To Abraham, God promised salvation and exalta-
tion if he would walk as the Lord taught him to walk. Further, the
Lord covenanted with Abraham that he would restore to Abraham's
seed the same laws and ordinances, in all their beauty and perfec-
tion, which that ancient patriarch had received. "For as many as re-
ceive this gospel," the Lord said to him, "shall be called after thy
14 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Pridag. September 29 P'"t Dag
name, and shall be accounted thy seed, and shall rise up and bless
thee, as their father." (Abraham 2:10.)
Now we have this same everlasting covenant. We have the
restored gospel, and every person who belongs to the Church, who
has passed through the waters of baptism, has had the inestimable
privilege of making a personal covenant with the Lord that will save
him provided he does the things he agrees to do when he enters into
that covenant with God.
Alma's Explanation
Alma recited this personal covenant of salvation at the waters
of Mormon in language like this — all of it is, of course, summed up
in the promise to keep the commandments of God — but Alma gives
these particulars: He says that when we go into the waters of bap-
tism we covenant that we will come into the fold of Christ and be
numbered with his people. We covenant that we will take upon our-
selves the name of Christ and be Saints in very deed. We covenant
that we will bear one another's burdens, that they may be light. We
covenant that we will mourn with those that mourn. We covenant
that we will comfort those that stand in need of comfort. We cove-
nant that we will stand as witnesses of Christ and of God at all times
and in all things and in all places that we may be in, even until death.
Then, by way of summary, Alma says we covenant that we will serve
God and keep his commandments.
The Lord's Part
In return, that is, if we do all these things, the Lord on his part
promises us that we will come forth in the first resurrection and be
redeemed of him; that he will pour out his Spirit more abundantly
upon us while we are here in this life; and that we will have eternal
life in the world to come.
I don't suppose that the Lord is making any useless covenants
with any individual; and so, any person who will keep this covenant,
and do all the things required by it, can have in his heart the as-
surance that he will go to the presence of God and have eternal life
in the mansions that are prepared.
Renewing of Covenant
So important is this covenant in the eyes of the Lord that he has
provided for us a means and a way to renew it often. The ordinance
whereby we renew this covenant is the ordinance of the sacrament.
Every time we partake of the sacrament worthily, with humble hearts
and contrite spirits, we agree again that we will take upon ourselves
the name of Christ, always remember him, and keep his command-
ments which he has given us. And the Lord agrees with us again
that we will always have his Spirit to be with us; and further, that we
ELDER BRUCE R. McCONKlE
15
will have eternal life in his kingdom in accordance with the revelation
which says,
Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and
I will raise him up at the last day. (John 6:54.)
To be saved is to go to the celestial kingdom of heaven. To be
exalted is to gain the highest heaven or degree within that glory. Not
only have we been permitted as Latter-day Saints to take the cove-
nant of salvation, and to renew it from time to time, but we have also
been privileged to enter into covenants which will give us exaltation
in our Father's kingdom. After a man has taken the covenant of
baptism and has pressed forward in righteousness and steadfastness
before the Lord, and has desired to keep his commandments, and
manifested by his works that he places the things of the kingdom of
heaven first and will let the things of this world take care of them-
selves, there comes a time when he is called and chosen and ordained
to the higher priesthood. Ordination to the higher priesthood in-
cludes a covenant of exaltation.
The Lord revealed this covenant to Joseph Smith in this lan-
guage:
For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of
which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by
the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.
They become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abra-
ham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God.
And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the
Lord;
For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;
And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father's kingdom;
therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.
And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to
the priesthood.
Therefore, all those who receive the priesthood, receive this oath and
covenant of my Father which he cannot break, neither can it be moved.
But whoso breaketh this covenant after he hath received it, and al-
together turneth therefrom, shall not have forgiveness of sins in this
world nor in the world to come. (D. & C. 84:33-41.)
Fulness of Blessings
Now, according to the revelations which we have received, the
fulness of the priesthood, meaning, I suppose, the fulness of the bless-
ings of the priesthood, is had only in the temples of God. There is
an order of the priesthood which is named the new and everlasting
covenant of marriage. When people enter into that order of mar-
riage, administered in the temples of the Lord, by the Lord's servants,
having the Lord's authority, they make a covenant of exaltation, a
covenant that will bring them up in the resurrection as husband and
wife. The family unit will continue, and they will gain the highest
reward and the greatest honor and glory that our Father can bestow
16 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Dag
on any of his children. They will be gods, even the sons of God,
and all things will be theirs, for they will receive of the fulness of
the Father.
These covenants which we take in the waters of baptism and
when we partake of the sacrament, if we keep them, will guarantee
us a place in the celestial world. These covenants which we take
when we are ordained to the higher priesthood, and when we enter
into that order of priesthood which is the new and everlasting cove-
nant of marriage, if we keep them, will guarantee us a place of ex-
altation in eternity.
And as with the covenant of baptism, so with the covenant of
marriage: I don't suppose the Lord is making a useless covenant with
us or offering us something that we are not able to obtain. In each
instance, if we keep our part of the bargain and do the things we
know we should, the Lord has promised to do his share and keep his
part of the bargain and give us the promised reward.
Baptism A Gate
Sometimes someone will say: "Well, I have been baptized into
the Church; I am a member of the Church; I'll just go along and live
an ordinary sort of life; I won't commit any great crimes; I'll live a
reasonably good Christian life; and eventually I will gain the king-
dom of God."
I don't understand it that way. I think that baptism is a gate.
It is a gate which puts us on a path; and the name of the path is the
straight and narrow path. The straight and narrow path leads up-
ward from the gate of baptism to the celestial kingdom of heaven.
After a person has entered the gate of baptism, he has to press for-
ward with a steadfastness in Christ, as Nephi expresses it, having a
perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men; and if
he endures to the end, then he gains the promised reward.
And so it is with marriage and exaltation. Sometimes people
think they can enter into the ordinance of celestial marriage and then
be indifferent or lukewarm or even commit iniquity and sin, and yet
figure that eventually, in the eternities that are prepared, after they
have paid the penalties for their sins, they will come up as husband
and wife and enter into their exaltation. Such is not the case. The
same principles apply to marriage and exaltation as apply to bap-
tism and salvation. There is no such thing as gaining salvation or
exaltation except by obedience to those laws upon which the receipt
of these blessings is predicated. Salvation never has been and never
will be the fruit of sin.
Covenants To Be Kept
After we have been baptized, after we have been married in the
temple, after we have taken all these covenants, we have to keep
ELDER JOSEPH L. WIRTHLIN 17
them. Every promise that we receive is conditioned upon our subse-
quent faithfulness. It is expressly so stated in the marriage cove-
nant itself. We have to be obedient, faithful, and diligent, valiant
in the testimony of Christ, walking by every word that proceedeth
forth from his mouth. By such a course we will sanctify our souls.
When we become sanctified and pure, we are capable and eligible
and worthy to stand in the presence of our Father. No unclean thing
can dwell in his presence. The whole process of salvation, this whole
probation that we are undergoing in mortality, is to permit us to
cleanse and perfect and purify our souls. It is to permit us to take
evil and iniquity and carnality and everything that leads away from
God out of our souls, and replace those characteristics with right-
eousness and virtue and truth and obedience, which, if we do, degree
by degree, will perfect us until eventually we are clean and spotless
and pure and are able to stand the glory of the celestial world. If
we can't stand the glory of the celestial kingdom, we won't be able
to go where God and Christ are.
Blessings to Follow
We get the greatest blessings that it is possible for men to get
here in this life by living the gospel. The world may be in turmoil,
torn and disheveled; there may be blood and carnage on every hand,
but if we keep the commandments of God, we will get the Holy Ghost
for our companion and guide. Those who have the Holy Ghost get
the peace which passeth understanding. Now, that is the greatest
gift that a person can get while he dwells in mortality.
And then by having kept those same commandments and having
walked in that same path, having kept those same covenants, we get
the sure promise that we will be inheritors of a celestial exaltation
in the mansions that are prepared. The gospel gives us the greatest
blessings it is possible to receive in time, and assures us of the great-
est inheritance it is possible to gain in eternity. How grateful we
ought to be for it! How anxious we should be to keep the command-
ments of God, and the covenants that we have made, so that we may
have all the choice and rich things the Lord promises the Saints. It
is my prayer that we may so do, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER JOSEPH L. WIRTHLIN
First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric
I sincerely trust, my brethren and sisters, that I might enjoy an
interest in your faith and prayers during the few moments that I shall
stand before you. I have the high honor and privilege of laboring
with the youth of the Church; and it is a distinction and an honor to
associate with Bishop Richards and Bishop Isaacson, who have the
welfare of the young people at heart.
GENERAL CONFERENCE
First Day
Paul's Admonition
The admonition of the Apostle Paul to his younger associate
Timothy is so applicable to youth:
Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the be-
lievers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.
(I Timothy 4:12.)
Through the great youth program of the Church, the admonition
of Paul to Timothy is being adhered to. On every hand we see the
evidence in the lives of these young people of their belief, faith, char-
ity, and purity.
Sometime ago while I was visiting in the southern part of the
state with Sister Wirthlin, we decided to remain overnight at Bryce
Canyon. We arrived in the afternoon, meeting some of the young
people who were employed there. They came to our cabin and held
what I would call a fireside chat. These young men and women told
us of ambitions and objectives to be achieved and of their great faith
in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. I remember one young man
who told us that he come to Bryce Canyon with the hope of earning
enough money to pay his school expenses for the coming year. He
was promised a certain salary, but later the manager indicated that
the salary could not be paid in the amount first mentioned. The
young man was deeply worried, knowing that the income for the
summer would not be adequate. He said he worried about it for
several days and wondered whether or not he should seek employ-
ment elsewhere.
"Finally, one day," he declared," as I was driving out among the
cedars to gather firewood for the lodge, I said to myself, 'Why not ask
the Lord about it?' So I stopped the truck and walked out among the
cedars, knelt down, and talked to my Heavenly Father. And there
came to my heart a feeling of assurance that I should remain at Bryce
Canyon and things would work out. A few days later the manager
came to me and said, 'We have decided to give you the salary prom-
ised you in the first place.' "
You couldn't convince that young man that the Lord hadn't an-
swered his prayer. He believed implicitly in God, and because of
that great faith he took his problem to the Lord and found the solu-
tion.
The next morning when we went to the lodge for our breakfast,
I noticed on the table the name of the waitress, an old familiar Latter-
day Saint name. When the young lady came in, I asked her where
she lived, and she answered, "I live in Bountiful."
I asked, "I suppose you are a member of this so-called Mormon
Faith of Young People
Church?"
She replied, "Yes, I am.
ELDER JOSEPH L. WIRTHLIN 19
Then I asked, "What kind of church is it?"
She declared rather emphatically, "It's a good church."
And then I put the next question quite strongly and asked her
if she thought it was the only true church. In a very positive way she
gave me to understand that it was the true church. At that point
Sister Wirthlin told the young lady who I was, and that ended it.
But the thrill of the whole thing was that this young woman, talking
to a stranger, was willing to bear testimony to the fact that she be-
longs to the restored Church of Jesus Christ.
Faith of Serviceman
Some four weeks ago I had a rather interesting and inspiring ex-
perience. A young man whom I have known since he was a boy came
into my office. He said, "I'm a reserve officer, and I have been called
into the army."
He had been married only about four or five years and has two
lovely children, and I sorrowfully replied, "Paul, I'm sorry, in a way."
He said, "Brother Wirthlin, don't worry about me, I have come
here this morning to get some tracts that I might do some missionary
work among my companions in the army; and furthermore, I have a
promise, which I look upon as a divine promise, that I shall live to
see the day when my father, who is not a member of the Church, will
join it. I'm so impressed with that promise, I'm not worrying about
the experiences that are immediately ahead of me." Such faith — so
simple, and so profound! This young man will enjoy the blessings
of our Heavenly Father because of his sweet, clean life and his faith
in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the priesthood.
We often hear young people bear their testimonies to the divin-
ity of this great work, and what a thrill it is; although, at times, there
are evidences of a negative attitude on the part of older people. They
say these young people cannot stand up and testify that they know
this is the Church of God, that God lives, that Jesus is his Son, and
that Joseph Smith was a true prophet. Brothers and sisters, young
people, even a child at the age of eight who has been baptized, can
stand up under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost and bear sincere
testimony that he knows the Heavenly Father lives, that Jesus is
his Son, and that Joseph Smith was his chosen instrument. There
is no question about that in my mind.
Day of Pentecost
Go back to the days of Peter, the Apostle, after Christ had
left the disciples, and they had received the Holy Ghost. They
stood before a great multitude of people on the Day of Pentecost
and preached to them the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The
throng of people were so pricked in their hearts that they arose as
one man and asked, "... Men and brethren, what shall we do?"
Peter answered them and said,
20 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday. September 29 First Day
. . . Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus
Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy
Ghost.
For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that
are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. (Acts 2:37-39.)
Any child who attains the right age, who has faith and repents
of his sins and is baptized for the remission of sin under the hands
of authorized servants of God, can receive the gift of the Holy
Ghost; and under the inspiration of that sweet spirit, he can bear
his testimony. Did not the Christ declare:
But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from
the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father,
he shall testify of me. (John 15:26.)
Spirit of Testimony
I recall a friend of mine who had a great sorrow to bear. He
had sought solace in many places. Finally, one fast Sunday he said
to his wife, "Let us go over to fast meeting." He hadn't been too
active in the Church. In the fast meeting he saw many of the young
people bearing their testimonies. The spirit of testimony took hold
of him, and he stood up and bore his testimony. That same afternoon
he asked another associate of mine if he could have some place in
the activities of the Church, and he was called to serve. Today he
is a loyal, devoted, and fruitful servant of our Heavenly Father.
Now, what about the young men who are being called into
the armed forces of the nation? After all, we use this axiom: Old
men for counsel and young men for battle. In the bloody struggle
of war, it is youth who suffer. Their blood is spilt; their lives are
sacrificed; and many are denied the blessings of having a companion
and rearing a family. We owe much to these young men. First, we
owe them encouragement. We owe to them letters in a constant
stream to keep them encouraged, to keep their faith built up. Then,
if death should come, because of their sweet, clean lives, they will
regardless of what happens to them if death should come, because
of their sweet, clean lives, they will be able to meet the great Judge
who will extend his hand to them and give them that heavenly salu-
tation: "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."
Aaronic Priesthood Program
The Aaronic Priesthood program of the Church is most vital. It
is a training field for the young men of the Church. And what a
grand and glorious thing it is to know that a boy at the tender age
of twelve can receive divine authority from on high and become a
servant of God. Whenever I think of these twelve-year-old boys,
I always think of another one who lived nearly two thousand years
ago — the boy Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. At the age of
twelve we find him attending the Feast of the Passover with his
ELDER JOSEPH L. WIRTHLIN 21
parents in the city of Jerusalem, and in the course of events he
found his way to the temple. There he was discussing the problems
of the day with the great, the wise, and the learned. Later his
mother missed him, and in looking for him, found him in the temple.
In effect, she said to him, "Do you not know that you have caused
your father and me a good deal of sorrow and grief?" Then he
gave her that memorable answer, "... wist ye not that I must be
about my Father's business?" (Luke 2:49.) That should be the
slogan of the Aaronic Priesthood, in which every boy at the age
of twelve commences his ministry in the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints. The Aaronic Priesthood affords opportunities
that young boys cannot afford to miss, if they will take advantage of
them; just as Paul said to Timothy,
Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the be-
lievers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in puritv.
(I Timothy 4:12.)
Auxiliary Organizations
Then, too, we have the great auxiliary organizations of the
Church. We have the Sunday School which provides lessons cov-
ering the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ; we have the Young
Men's Mutual Improvement Association and the Young Women's
Mutual Improvement Association. We have our seminaries and
institutes. We have our great welfare program, too, which should
play a pertinent part in training our youth to be thrifty, ambitious,
and willing to sustain themselves by the sweat of their brows and
the toil of their hands. The Primary Association of the Church
makes a great contribution in the spiritual, vocational, and recrea-
tional training of our children. It is the Primary that takes the
child at a tender age and guides his footsteps in the paths of prayer
and faith; and it teaches him how to use his hands effectively. The
Primary Association is closely related to the young men who be-
come holders of the Aaronic Priesthood, as it provides a preparatory
course for all young men of the Church who anticipate receiving
the Aaronic Priesthood. May I say, emphatically, the Primary
Association has been one of the great factors in giving young men
a vision of their responsibilities in the future. May God always
bless and sustain the fine sisters who have been and who are carry-
ing on this splendid work.
Boy Scout Program
Another great and very important project of which little is
said is that of the Boy Scout program. I want to say to you, as
the vocational and recreational program of the Church for the
Aaronic Priesthood, there is nothing finer than scouting. I say this
because I have three sons, two of them are Eagle Scouts, and the
22 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Day
other one a Life Scout. As I have observed their work in scouting,
to me it has been almost comparable to a college education. Many
times there are those of us who feel scouting is strictly a recreational
program, but that is only a part of it. We are faced today with
a big problem in knowing what to do with the leisure time of our
boys, especially during the vacation period. The scouting program
will take up all of this leisure time, provided we encourage our boys
to participate in it.
About a year ago a Scout was sent to me for an oral examina-
tion covering the project of producing beef. I asked many ques-
tions of the scout pertaining to the production of beef, and I was
quite surprised when he answered every one of them correctly.
With the knowledge he has accumulated through the merit badge
project in scouting, he will be able to go forward in the beef in-
dustry on his own, although he is tender in years.
There are many other projects which can be most helpful to
young men in working out their future vocations.
As a father of three sons, and all of them Scouts, if I were to
choose someone to supervise their recreation, I would choose the
scouters of my own ward, because I know they would be in good
hands and nothing would happen that would be detrimental to
their character.
Where we have the right kind of Aaronic Priesthood work, we
will have the great scouting program supplementing it; and where
there is good scouting, there is good Aaronic Priesthood work. I
plead with you to support the Boy Scou.ts.
Missionaries
I haven't forgotten the 5800 young men and young women
out in the world, meeting people far beyond them in age and ex-
perience. With the sword of truth in their hands for defense and
offense, they are convincing men they have a great message, and
as a result thousands of people are accepting the gospel of Jesus
Christ in this nation and all over the world.
Support of Youth
So, we plead for your support, for your help in encouraging
the youth of the Church to participate in the great Church youth
program, with the aim that they may be prepared when the time
comes to take over the responsibilities that we older people now
have. Returning to Paul's admonition to Timothy, "Let no man
despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word,
in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity." Impress
every young man with his responsibilities and obligations in the
priesthood, that when temptation crosses his path, he may remember
the answer of the boy Savior in the temple when he said, "... wist
ELDER MATTHEW COWLEY
23
ye not that I must be about my Father's business?" This I humbly
pray, will be the blessing of every young man and every young
woman in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Amen.
ELDER MATTHEW COWLEY
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
I am indeed grateful this morning, my brothers and sisters,
for the counsel which we have received. I am grateful for the
counsel we have received which has come from the President whom
we sustain as a prophet, as the mouthpiece of God to his children
here on earth. I endorse his timely counsel with respect to our
conduct in the coming political campaigns and the keeping of our
tempers. I am reminded of a story that was told of Senator Chauncey
Depew when he was launching into a campaign for the Senate of
the United States. His opponent came to him and said, "Senator,
let's make this campaign clean."
The Senator replied, "I fully agree. If you will promise not to lie
about me, I'll promise not to tell the truth about you." How clean
the campaign was, I am unable to say.
Never Lose a Friend
When I was a youngster employed in the Senate of the United
States, there came into the office one day a former governor of this
state. While we were visiting, he said, "I'd like to give you a
little advice."
I said, "That's fine, I appreciate advice from one of your ex-
perience."
He said, "Never lose a friend over politics or religion."
I have tried to keep that counsel in my mind all my life. I
was in politics a little bit at one time, for which I have since re-
pented. I was successful in one election. I was defeated in an-
other. But I am very thankful that I can say tdday that I still have
the friendship of my opponents. I cherish their friendship. I respect
the principles for which they stood, and I am sure they respect me
in the same light.
Brothers and sisters, we are children of God, we are Saints of
the Most High God. There is no place in this kingdom upon the
earth for God's children to make enemies, one with the other, both
professing to be members of the Church, over politics or religion.
Blessings of Gathering
I am reminded now of the opening prayer. In that prayer we
thanked God that he had sought us out from far and near places
to gather here. How thankful we should be that we have been
sought out to gather where we are. And as I stand here this morn-
24 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Dag
ing, I see two in this congregation who have come all the way from
New Zealand, two good Maori Latter-day Saints who have come
to receive the blessings in the temple of God. These are the only
two who have had the opportunity to come from New Zealand dur-
ing the past thirteen years. There are thousands of us living in
the shadows of the temples of God upon whom there is no financial
burden to go to these temples. How I thrill this morning when I
see this grand couple who have saved and saved and prayed and
prayed that they might one day come to the temple of God and
receive their blessings. They have come eight thousand miles to
spend a few days with us and to return back home. I trust that
they have listened to the admonition which has been given all
of us this morning, to keep the covenants which we have made with
our God, to remember the blessings which are theirs if they remain
faithful to the end.
I see also our good Hawaiian sister, Sister Kauhini, the presi-
dent of the Relief Society of the Oahu Stake. I see also some of
our Japanese and some of our Indian friends. Yes, I thank God
that we have been sought out from places far and near to gather
here. After this conference I am going among the Indian people of
the Southwest Indian Mission. Brothers and sisters, they are our
people. The salvation of these people rests upon us. The rewards
to which they are entitled must come through us and the service we
are willing to render to them and for them.
Love for Native Races
I love these native races. They have given me something that
I could have received from no other source. Even though some
classify them as heathen, yet I have never seen the veil between
God and man so thin as I have seen among these native races. God
has restored his gospel for all people. We have had eleven thou-
sand missionaries in the field since 1946, going to all parts of the
world where they are permitted to go. As has been mentioned,
they are young, unexperienced men and women. But whether in
New Zealand or in Hawaii or among the Indians of this nation or
wherever they may go in the world, God magnifies his priesthood,
and his priesthood speaks as having authority, and the people give
listening ears.
Sometimes they are warned, the people of the world, to be-
ware of these Mormon missionaries; and they are referred to the
prophecy that one day false prophets would come among them.
God never fulfils his purposes through false prophets. It is only
through true prophets that he fulfils his purposes among men. It is
a matter of historical record that God said he would scatter Israel.
It is a matter of historical record that he said he would gather Israel
from the four corners of the earth. And this congregation today is
a witness to the world that it is a matter of historical fact that
ELDER MATTHEW COWLEY
25
through the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, God is
gathering Israel.
Prophecies Fulfilled
God said that in the last days the house of the Lord would be
established in the tops of the mountains, and exalted above the hills,
and all nations would flow unto it. It is a matter of historical record
that he uttered that prophecy through one of his prophets. It is a
matter of historical fact that the mountain of the Lord's house has
been established in the tops of the mountains, and all nations have
been flowing into it. It is a matter of historical fact that the stick
of Judah has been written and is in the hand of God as one of his
mediums of bringing salvation to his children. It is a matter of
historical record that there was also to be a stick of Joseph, and
that these two should be one in the hand of God. It is a matter
of historical fact that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
is now distributing this record, this stick of Joseph along with this
stick of Judah to the thousands and thousands of those to whom the
missionaries are going with their testimonies of the restoration of
the gospel. It is a matter of historical record that God was to
send Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful
day of the Lord to turn the hearts of the children to the fathers and
the hearts of the fathers to the children, lest the earth be smitten
with a curse. It is a matter of historical fact that in this dispensa-
tion Elijah has returned to the earth, for the hearts of the children
have been turned to their parents and those of the parents to the
children. We know to whom that prophet came. It is a matter
of historical record that God said through his Apostle that another
angel would fly through the midst of heaven, having the everlast-
ing gospel to preach to those who dwell upon the earth. To the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints it is a matter of histori-
cal fact that that angel has flown through the midst of heaven, and
the everlasting gospel has been restored to the earth. It was said
by the Master that this gospel of the kingdom should be preached
as a witness to all nations, and then should the end come. It is a
matter of historical record and fact that there are right now 5,840
missionaries representing the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints out in the world, bearing witness to the restoration of the
gospel of Jesus Christ.
God's Kingdom Established
Brothers and sisters, what more do we need other than the
testimony of these historical facts to confirm the fulfilment of God's
prophecies as prophesied by his servants? And we know as ex-
plained by Daniel that God would set up a kingdom in the last
days. We know the story of the image which was seen by Nebu-
chadnezzar in a dream and the interpretation by Daniel under the
26 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Dag
power of God of that dream. We know that those kingdoms and
empires symbolized by the head, shoulders, and breast, the belly
and thighs, and the legs, all passed away, and that during the ex-
istence of none of those kingdoms did God set up his kingdom never
to be destroyed. But in the days of the kings symbolized by the
toes, God did establish his kingdom in the earth, and it will never
be destroyed.
Loyalty to Priesthood
The priesthood of God is among men. Let us who hold it be
faithful and loyal to this priesthood. We represent God, brethren.
God must work through you to fulfil his prophecies; therefore, prize
your priesthood, be loyal to it, be humble before God, and you will
accomplish his purposes in the building up of his kingdom, and this
work shall go forth into all the world and will reach out and will
touch those who are to be brought out, two of a family and one of a
city, and gathered to Zion.
I repeat, I thank God that we have been sought out from far
and distant places to gather here. I thank God for the young
missionaries who many years ago found my ancestors on the Isle
of Man and brought them out, and they came in poverty and found
their way to Nauvoo. They met the Prophet. One of these young
lads was almost to be attacked and destroyed by a mob as he was
lifting water from the Mississippi River, but his life was spared as
it had been prophesied it would be. Yes, I thank God with all my
heart that we have been gathered out from the world, and I thank
God that these people, these islanders, and these Indians are re-
sponding to this message, and that once in a great while, these peo-
ple in their poverty find a way to get to Zion and go into the temple
of God.
Thanksgiving for Natives
I offer up my thanksgiving to my Father in heaven for these
natives who are here today. My, how much I owe to them! I
remember during the war years that this fine couple were both in
the military service of their country. And after the service was
completed, as we had no missionaries in New Zealand, they both
responded to mission calls. One day as I was going to visit them
in the city of Rotorua, I discovered that they had built a beautiful
new house. As I went into that home, I noticed that over the door
there was a beautiful little printed sign with the name on it, Matthew
Cowley. That was to be my house whenever I was visiting in
that area of the mission. And when my family and I left New
Zealand, it wasn't enough that we had lived in their home, they
took the blankets from the beds on which we had slept and in-
sisted that we bring those blankets back home with us.
Are these people, brothers and sisters, these islanders of the sea,
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 27
these Indians of the reservation, worthy of the blessings of the
gospel of Jesus Christ? Yes, a thousand times, yes!
God bless us all. May we be faithful and devoted to this
cause, obedient to the principles of the gospel, sustaining one an-
other in our respective positions, honoring each other in our homes,
preserving the integrity of our families, the integrity of our priest-
hood quorums, and of all the auxiliaries, that God may continue to
be and abide with us. This I pray in the name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.
President George Albert Smith:
We have been speaking of a good many things this morning.
I have been looking around, and another one who has passed
away since our last conference is Elder Frank Evans, one of the
most faithful and devoted workers the Church has had, and his
wife is equally faithful and helpful in doing things for the Church.
I can hardly refer to the passing of these men and women who
have worked so close to us in the office. I hope and pray that
we will all remember these good women who are left when their
husbands go, and not forget them.
Another thing while I am on my feet, I want to call attention
to the fact that several references have been made to our keeping
the commandments of the Lord in order to obtain our blessings. 1
would like to refer to the 130th Section of the Doctrine and Cove-
nants with reference to that principle:
"Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life,
it will rise with us in the resurrection. And if a person gains more
knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and
obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the
world to come.
"There is a law, [this is what I particularly want to emphasize]
irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world,
upon which all blessings are predicated —
And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience
to that law upon which it is predicated."
Now brethren, we have had our attention called to the fact
that we have many blessings that other people do not enjoy. We
are members of the Church of Jesus Christ, but our blessings will
be the result of our obedience to the laws governing those blessings,
so let us continue to set an example among our fellows.
Th« Relief Society Singing Mothers will now sing "My Soul
Is Athirst For God."
The closing prayer will be offered by President Arvell L. Child
of the Nyssa Stake, Oregon, after which this Conference will stand
adjourned until 2:00 o'clock this afternoon.
The proceedings of that session will be broadcast over Station
KSL, Salt Lake City, and by arrangement through KSL, over the
GENERAL CONFERENCE
First Day
other stations named at the beginning of the session. The Confer-
ence will also be broadcast over the television station of KSL,
channel five.
Important messages and calls coming to us for persons supposed
to be in attendance at the Conference will be announced at the dis-
missal of the meeting over the loud speaking system on the grounds.
The choir music for this session has been furnished by the
Combined Chorus of Singing Mothers from the Cache Region and
Salt Lake City Stakes, with Sister Florence Jepperson Madsen con-
ducting, and Elder Frank W. Asper at the organ.
Haven't we had a good time? Hasn't the Lord kept his part
of the agreement, that when a few meet together in his name he will
be there and that to bless them? He has been here.
The Singing Mothers will now sing to us, after which Brother
Child will offer the benediction.
Singing by the choir "My Soul Is Athirst For God."
Closing prayer was offered by President Arvell L. Child of
the Nyssa Stake.
Conference adjourned until 2 o'clock p.m.
Friday, September 29.
The second session of the Conference convened at 2:00 p.m.
President George Albert Smith presided, and at President
Smith's request, President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., First Counselor in
the First Presidency, conducted the services.
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
This is the second session of the One Hundred Twenty-first
Semi-Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. We are convened in the Tabernacle on Temple Square in
Salt Lake City, Utah.
President George Albert Smith is present and presiding and
has asked J. Reuben Clark, Jr., one of his counselors, to conduct
the services. •
These services, and all general sessions of the Conference, will
be broadcast in the Assembly Hall and in Barratt Hall (60 North
Main) over a loud speaking system and by television.
The proceedings of this session will be broadcast over Station
KSL of Salt Lake City, and by arrangement through KSL, over
the stations named in the first session of the Conference.
FIRST DAY
AFTERNOON MEETING
ELDER CLIFFORD E. YOUNG 29
This session will also be televised over the KSL television sta-
tion, channel five.
The choir singing for this session will be by the Combined
Chorus of Singing Mothers from the Cache Region and Salt Lake
City Stakes, Sister Florence Jepperson Madsen conducting and
Elder Frank W. Asper at the organ.
We will begin the services by the Relief Society Singing Moth-
ers rendering: "Hear My Prayer."
The opening prayer will be offered by President G. Carlos
Smith, of the Big Cottonwood Stake, Utah.
The Relief Society Singing Mothers sang "Hear My Prayer."
The opening prayer was offered by President G. Carlos Smith,
of the Big Cottonwood Stake.
The Relief Society Singing Mothers then sang "How Lovely
Are Thy Dwellings."
ELDER CLIFFORD E. YOUNG
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve Apostles
Our testimonies have indeed been strengthened so far in this
conference, and I share with you in gratitude to our Heavenly Father
for his goodness, for the manifestations of his Spirit, and above all
I am grateful for the Church, for the testimony of its truth, and
for the fellowship with you, my brethren and sisters.
Mormon Church a Challenge
Some weeks ago I was handed a clipping taken from a Los
Angeles paper in which appeared a report of some remarks made
over the radio by one of the distinguished clergymen of Los Angeles.
His broadcasts are in the nature of a questionnaire, and one of
the questions submitted to him was this: "There are said to be
more Latter-day Saints in Los Angeles and its environs than there
are in Salt Lake City. Do you not regard this as a threat?" Dr.
Fifleld, in answering the question said,
No, I do not consider this a threat. I consider it a challenge. The
Protestant churches, I think, have much to learn from the Mormon Church.
There is no church in the world that does so much for its young people
as the Mormon Church. I personally know most of the dignitaries of the
Mormon Church. I visit in Salt Lake City frequently, and I know of no
finer or more high-minded people anywhere. They live the cleanest and
most temperate lives of any religious sect that I know of. Their people
support their church generously with their tithing system, and the church
in turn supports its people and provides a way for their social care so that
none of them is on any public relief roll.
As I read that, I wished that were true. The possibilities of it
30 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday. September 29 . Fust Day
are like the possibilities in the Church for all things that are in
harmony with the mind and will of God. But sometimes some of
us do not always conform. If all the Latter-day Saints conformed
to the counsels of the Church, this would be verily true. But we do
have within the Church this possibility. It isn't a dream. It's a
reality, if we will. And then he goes on.
Of course, I do not accept the story of the finding of the golden
plates and the translation thereof of the Book of Mormon in the manner
related, but I do think that as a religious organization, holding its people
to a high level of culture and education and social progress, the Mormon
Church has no parallel in our time. No, I do not think the Mormon
Church is any threat to other churches. I think it is a challenge to them
to do better work with their members and their converts.
President Clark's Book
As I read that, I recalled a very constructive criticism of Presi-
dent Clark's book, On the Way to Immortality and Eternal Life.
A brief review of that book appeared in the Unitarian Christian
Register in the April number of this year. This is a magazine that is
124 years old, a magazine that carries each month criticisms and re-
views of the leading theological, religious, and philosophical books
as they are published from time to time. Outstanding works they
are, and it was certainly in keeping with the dignity and the schol-
arly atmosphere of Brother Clark's book to have this criticism appear
in this magazine. In the final statement, and that is the point I
wish to emphasize, the critic says this: "It is an excellent introduc-
tion to the contemporary position of one of the most influential re-
ligions on the American scene." Now, of course, we all like to hear
nice things about our Church, but the thing that we are interested in,
my brothers and sisters, is this: Are we worthy of this trust — this
pedestal on which we are placed — as set forth in these statements?
That is the challenge for us. Are we meeting this challenge? Do
we in very deed in our living represent the Church and kingdom of
God? On one occasion the Savior, as he was speaking to his dis-
ciples and telling them of the events that should come to pass in the
last day, after making certain predictions and promises, said, "And
this gospel of the kingdom," and that was quoted here this morning,
"shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all the nations;
and then shall the end come." (Matt. 24:14.)
Witnesses of the Truth
On the Sabbath day, as we partake of the sacrament, we witness
unto the Lord Jesus Christ that we will keep his commandments,
that we will live in harmony with his will. And so I repeat, we have
this challenge. Are we witnessing the truth to the world? We can
only witness it as we live in harmony with those concepts that have
been revealed by our Heavenly Father. Lip service is not the service
that is required in this Church. It is a constant daily service to our
ELDER OSCAR A. KIRKHAM
31
fellow men. I alluded to it a minute ago with reference to people
being on relief. We have a challenge there to see to it that those of
our people who are in distress shall not be neglected but shall be
provided for, and if we fail to measure up to that challenge, and that
is the reason why we have people on public relief, we are failing
in our responsibilities as leaders and members of the Church. The
Lord has pointed the way. We should walk therein. We know the
way, but it is in our neglect and in our failure to live up to that
which we know to be true, that we fail to witness that we are keep-
ing his commandments, that we are a witness of the truth. This ap-
plies not only in this but in other walks of life also. We are told in
James 1:27,
Pure religion and undeflled before God and the Father is this, to visit
the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted
from the world.
Constant Service Required
In our community recently, we had a very serious tragedy. One
of the young men of our city, a very promising young man, met with
a tragic death. The community responded in love and sympathy
to the family; and when the funeral service was held, it proved to
be one of the largest attended in a long time. One couldn't help
feeling the love and the sympathy there manifested. But the next
day, then what? And the days to follow. These are the things that
should give us concern. It isn't just a spasmodic move or a ges-
ture, but it's a constant service that is required of us as Latter-day
Saints in all we do, in our various walks of life. Therein our religion
can be exemplified as we each day experience problems such as this.
Now, I do not regard this as difficult. I believe we can do it.
I believe the Lord is cognizant of our weaknesses sufficiently to
overlook them, and to make it possible, in spite of those weaknesses,
for us to carry out to the world that we do have a living, vital reli-
gion, that we have something that the people can live and exemplify
in their lives. Otherwise the gospel would not mean to us what it
does. I repeat again, it isn't a lip service. It is one that presents a
constant challenge of daily labor, laboring for good, for the estab-
lishment of truth, for the amelioration of suffering. We'll never
have peace in the world in any other way. It will come only if we
translate into our lives these divine concepts and these truths.
I pray, that the Lord will give us strength and power to do this,
in the name of Jesus. Amen.
ELDER OSCAR A. KIRKHAM
Of the First Council of the Seventy
I pray that I may enjoy the blessings of the Spirit of the Lord.
I thank him for my membership in this Church. I wish I had the
power and the ability to make that expression of appreciation more
32 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Dag
real, that it might be not only more helpful to me but also to those
with whom I associate.
Much Given and Expected
Much has been given to us. Much is expected of us. I sincerely
feel that there never was a time when greater opportunities faced our
Church. I know that every year, every score of years, brings to
that group and that generation like feelings, but truly great things
are now being wrought in the world, and great opportunities now
face us. Nations fear each other. There is much that is being
done, but we have a task that challenges truly the best that is
within us, me in my home, you in yours, all of us wherever we may
be.
These lines from John:
He that hath received his testimony has set to his seal that God is true.
(John 3:33.)
Baptism of Karl G. Maeser
I want to refer to the baptism of Karl G. Maeser, one of the
great spirits of our Church, one of the great leaders of the Brigham
Young University. Just after his baptism in Germany, he said
these words:
On coming out of the water, I lifted both my hands to heaven and
said, "Father, if what I have done just now is pleasing unto thee, give
me a testimony, and whatever thou shouldst require of my hands, I shall
do, even to the laying down of my life for this cause." (The Improve*
ment Era 3:25.)
Soon after this covenant with the Lord, he and President
Franklin D. Richards of the European Mission received the answer
to this promise to the Lord, for while neither one of them could
speak the language of the other, that is, Brother Richards could
not speak German, Karl G. Maeser could not understand English,
yet the Lord gave them the gift of tongues and of understanding.
The promise was fulfilled at once. You know, hundreds of you
in this audience today, that the Lord continued his blessings with
Karl G. Maeser, for numbered among his pupils were George Suther-
land of the Supreme Court of the United States, Reed Smoot of
the United States Senate, William H. King of the United States
Senate, and many, many others. I feel in like fashion we have also
in our hearts with all good intent made a like promise to the Lord.
And again I repeat, this is our opportunity to prove to the Lord that
promise.
Glory of the Gospel
At one of our recent conferences in one of the stakes, we asked
a young lady to tell of her experience at a national convention. She
had received lovely honors. She told the story in some detail of
ELDER OSCAR A. KIRKHAM
33
what had happened at the convention, but then as the detail of it
got wearisome to her, she took hold of the stand and seemed to
rise several inches higher as she said, "I want to bear my testimony.
That is what is on my heart." Then this youth in all her glory
expressed what her testimony meant to her.
Years have been somewhat many in my life. I'm easily up to
the top of the crest, but I challenge myself with you, the great
majority of this audience, if we do not take the opportunity that is
ours to serve him and courageously do his will, he will bring forward
a generation that will keep his commandments and prove the glory
of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Spirit of American Youth
I listened to a talented pressman a few days ago who had just
returned from Korea. He said the question was often asked of the
soldiers up in the front lines what they were fighting for. He told
only one simple incident. He said they know. Down the highway
when thousands of Koreans were evacuating a city, there came a
young fellow in a jeep. In the crowd that was hurrying on in con-
fusion was an old lady bent with age, a large bundle on her back.
The jeep stopped, the GI boy threw the bundle in, then lifted the
old lady into the seat. Down the road they went to safety. Well,
the pressman made quite a bit of that simple incident, and I believe
that I caught the spirit of it. Surely the American youth know what
they are fighting for. God bless them with courage when they re-
turn home, that they will take their place and do their best. May
the destiny that is theirs to have and enjoy be with them.
Service of Missionaries
A like spirit has gone out with 5800 young men and women in-
to different parts of the world. One simple, yet to me a glorious, ex-
perience was enjoyed last month in the East Central States Mission.
As is our custom, we meet with all the missionaries as we go through
a mission. Their testimonies are truly inspiring. We are thrilled as
we listen to them. I seldom leave a meeting but what I have to hold
back my tears of pride and joy for the youth of this Church. I re-
ceived a lovely reflection of their service in one experience. A brother
came to me after the dedication of one of the little chapels in the
mission and said, "Brother Kirkham, I have been in the Church now
for about nineteen years, and I am extremely grateful for what God
has given us. The light and the truth of the gospel has truly en-
riched my life. Let me tell you how it happened."
He said: "I had a young missionary come to my home. I used
to drink a cocktail occasionally. I smoked freely; but the young chap,
clean, sweet in his nature, and in his appearance so delightful, came
to our place and told us that he had something for us. I called Mother
in, and we sat and listened. This continued for several evenings,
34 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Day
until one night when we were quite free in our conversation and felt
we knew each other quite well, I took the liberty of rolling a cigaret.
And the young man said: 'I suppose it's time that I told you about
another great principle of the Latter-day Saints.' He said, 'I want to
read you what we call the Word of Wisdom,' and he started to
read to me. I had taken the cigaret out of my mouth and, as this
young chap read this Word of Wisdom, something happened to me.
I found myself trying to crush that thing in my fingers. I felt the
fire once but held my nerve and kept crushing it, and I said, as now I
say to you, Brother Kirkham, he spoke the truth. This boy brought
me a message from God and cleared up my life."
Accept Opportunties
Well, these opportunities are also ours. Just over the fence from
where we live is someone waiting to hear us speak the word. Con-
sider the way we accept our opportunities in citizenship. Yes, I ap-
peal to every Latter-day Saint: Vote — it's one of the high privileges
of your American citizenship. Bear your testimony every opportunity
that comes to you. "Stand up and be counted with the Lord."
God bless us and help us that these great hours may to us be
great realities and opportunities. May it be said of us, "Much was
given to you; much was expected; and you did your part." God bless
us and be with us that we may make of our glorious religion a reality.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER JOHN A. WIDTSOE
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
I confess, my brethren and sisters, that the call to occupy this
position this afternoon is somewhat unexpected. I am to give the
Church of the Air sermon next Sunday morning. It was intimated
that because of that appointment I would not be asked to speak from
this stand. So I have no special message in my heart. I suppose I'll
have to depend upon the Lord. That is good practice for Latter-day
Saints.
I am always happy to bear my testimony to my brethren and
sisters that this is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. I rejoice in
it; I know it to be true. The truth of it has lightened my life and has
given happiness to me and to my family. That I can say always to
my brethren and my sisters.
Year of Anniversaries
This has been a year of anniversaries. A short time ago, with-
in the last few weeks, the President of the Church went to Ha-
waii to celebrate the coming of the gospel to those islands one hun-
dred years ago. You have read of what happened there. He men-
tioned it briefly himself this morning in his address.
ELDER JOHN A. WIDTSOE
35
It is also a hundred years ago since the gospel was brought to
the foreign-speaking lands of Europe. Up to that time we had only
once attempted to preach the gospel in foreign tongues, namely in
the South Sea Islands. But a hundred years ago the missionaries sent
out by the First Presidency of that day entered the Scandinavian
and other countries of Europe and bore witness of the restoration of
the gospel of our Lord, Jesus Christ. They made notable progress
at that time, a progress which has resulted in a large influx of men
and women, faithful men and women, to the valleys of the mountains
here.
Scandinavian Celebration
It was my privilege to be sent to Scandinavia a few months ago
to take part in the celebration which the Saints of those countries
were holding and enjoying, because of the great anniversary. I
visited the three Scandinavian countries. I was given the privilege
primarily, I suppose, because I am able to speak a little of the tongues
of those countries. I visited Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, in ad-
dition to stopping briefly in England. I came back feeling thrilled
with the manner in which the gospel had developed and spread from
the humble beginnings of a hundred years ago in those countries.
You know, of course, that here in these valleys, among the stakes
and wards of Zion, the blood of those countries through intermar-
riage has spread until a large proportion of our people here carry
some of that blood.
The brethren and sisters of the Scandinavian countries had
planned large celebrations. I was able to attend fully the ones in
Stockholm, Sweden, and in Oslo, Norway. They were carefully laid
out after the pattern that had been planned for our celebration here
at home and were splendidly rendered, fully as well as the celebration
here at home. I missed the beginning of the celebration in Denmark
because of my hurried call and trip, but later on I met with the Danes
and enjoyed their company and partook of their spirit and learned
of the excellence of their celebration.
Gospel Changes Men
It was interesting to me to note how the gospel changes the very
nature of men and women, and how faithful and devoted men and
women may become to the cause of truth once it sinks into their
hearts.
Norway is a long country, nearly a thousand miles long. Up in
the icy north, we have two or three branches, one very recently es-
tablished, and I was pleased to find in Oslo, which is nearly at the
south end of the country, people who had come from the far north
to celebrate and to thank the Lord for the coming of the gospel to
their land. The same happened in Sweden; also in Denmark, which
is a small country. All had a very large representation of their
36 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday. September 29 First Dag
Church members in attendance at the celebrations. There was a
spirit of faith and devotion like that we have here today. Many peo-
ple had traveled hundreds of miles to sit by one another in meetings
like this and to listen to discourses on the simple principles of the
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
It was interesting to note, also, how men grow and develop
under the influence of the gospel spirit. Let a very humble man be
touched by the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and he becomes
transformed. He is no more the same man, no longer the same per-
son. He has changed completely. I am reminded of the statement
of the Prophet Joseph Smith at one time, when talking about the
children of Abraham; he said that any person who accepts the gos-
pel of Jesus Christ becomes of the seed of Abraham. A subtle change
occurs in the very physical system of the man, which makes him in-
deed one who belongs to the family of Abraham, the family of the
faithful. This notable change I observed a good many times on this
trip to Scandinavia this summer, that men are transformed for the
better, their powers multiplied, their vision increased, their under-
standing and comprehension brought out in new forms so much more
vigorously because of the gospel which they have received, because
of the truths of the gospel. I am happy to bear this record to my
brethren and sisters at this conference.
Greetings From European Saints
I am very happy also to bring you the greetings of the people,
our brethren and sisters of the covenant, of the faraway missions in
Europe. They send their greetings to you and their blessings also,
and their blessings are quite worth while for they come from com-
mon sources. They love you, they watch you; they follow you; they
try to emulate and to imitate that which you do here.
Meeting in Oslo
Some years ago, I have forgotten just how many, I had the priv-
ilege to go to Oslo, the capital of Norway, with President David O.
McKay and Elder Reed Smoot. The three of us came into the city
rather late in the afternoon. I think two of us at least were unan-
nounced. Perhaps Brother McKay was announced, the president
then of the European Mission, I am not sure about that. But we made
our way at once to the meeting place of the Latter-day Saints. I
shall never forget that meeting. We were not expected by the mem-
bers present. The meeting was composed of the people, the men and
women, who had been called to labor as missionaries in the city of
Oslo. It was a report meeting. One after another the people, young
and old, got up and gave a report of what they had done. I recall
one elderly lady who said that she hesitated to make her report, for
it was such a poor report. She had only had time during the last
month to bring the gospel to two hundred different homes. I thrilled
ELDER JOHN A. WIDTSOE
37
as I thought of the faith of that woman, the strength of her faith;
and how many of us fail to appreciate what we have received as she
did appreciate it. Many go by day after day, having received the
great gift of the eternal goSpel, the greatest of all gifts, but forgetting
to pay back to the Lord as he would like us to do a part of our time
and strength and power to assist in the advancement of the great
kingdom of God here upon this earth. I am sure that good sister re-
ceived the gift of joy from her labors.
There is much I might tell you even after a brief trip to Scandi-
navia this summer about the conditions of the people. They are faith-
ful Latter-day Saints, second to none in the wards of Zion. I just
touched old London for a few days and found it the same wonderful
old London, in the same condition as of the past. The people there,
our people, are reported to be faithful and true to their covenants
with the Lord, through their baptism into the Church.
Worldwide Message
I would like to say, before I close this brief report, that I was
greatly thrilled this morning as I heard Brother Cowley give his re-
port, and added to that we have heard from Brother Kirkham a few
moments ago. The message of the Church is not to the valleys of
the mountains alone. It is not to be confined in these valleys sur-
rounded by these everlasting hills. We have a worldwide message.
Our army of missionaries, five thousand eight hundred strong as was
reported this morning, implies our belief in the spread of the gospel
over the whole earth. The Lord has said himself that every ear shall
hear the gospel in these latter days. That means not only the ears
of the people who are here in this beautiful, blessed land of America,
but far beyond over the seas, on the islands, everywhere, the gospel
has been preached and must continue to be taught. And we're doing
this sacred work to the best of our ability. As we do that and con-
tinue to do it, the Lord will bless us and magnify us and make us
powerful and strong, acceptable to him. Let us never forget the
worldwide nature of our obligations before the Lord. Our mission-
ary system must be cherished and be kept alive constantly and for-
ever, until that last great day comes and the Lord says that the work
is done.
We Have The Truth
My brethren and sisters, I bear you again my testimony that I
know this to be the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is the truth. As Brig-
ham Young used to say, "Men ask me what the gospel of Jesus Christ
is, what name does it bear? And I say to you, its name might well
be truth." We and the Church, if we are faithful, as we have been
taught this morning by the President, the prophet of the Lord, shall
conquer. We cannot fail. Truth is never defeated. It blesses all
who possess it. We have the truth. If we will keep the truth and if
38 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Dag
we cherish it and practise it in our lives, then victory over error will
be ours from the smallest household in Zion to the farthest outpost
of Zion, wherever that may be. Thus through the restoration of the
gospel in our day, the whole world shall be blessed.
May the Lord bless us and fill us with an understanding of this
mighty work laid out for us in these latter days and make us able
to do the Lord's work, which we can do if we are faithful, I pray
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Relief Society Singing Mothers and the congregation sang
the hymn, "Praise to the Man."
ELDER MARK E. PETERSEN
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
I earnestly pray, my brothers and sisters, that while I stand here
the Spirit of the Lord will be with me because indeed it is a frighten-
ing thing to stand before so many people, and I realize my great
need of help.
President George F. Richards
I have missed in this conference the genial presence of President
George F. Richards. I would like you to know that I, as one of the
members of his Council, was very, very grateful for the privilege of
serving under his leadership. I regard him as a truly great man — a
great soul — a great leader. I am sure that no one had a more firm
faith in the Almighty than did President Richards. I am sure that
he was an inspired man of God, and I would like to say to you that
I, along with the other members of the Council, loved that man
deeply; and today, together with the rest of you, I miss his presence
here.
Story of a Friend
I would like to tell you a story about a friend of mine whom I
shall call Bill, for the sake of anonymity. During Bill's last year at
school, he met a lovely young woman named Helen. They became
very good friends, and it wasn't very long until they began to talk
about the possibility of their getting married.
During that same last year of school Bill fell in with a group
of fellows who were known as the most popular group on the campus.
They taught Bill some bad habits.
When Helen first saw Bill with a cigaret in his mouth, it nearly
broke her heart. She talked with him and pleaded with him, but
he felt that smoking cigarets was one of the things that went with
the popularity of this group on the campus. So her pleadings brought
no results. Helen began to wonder if she should stay with Bill or
ELDER MARK E. PETERSEN
39
not, whether she should allow their courtship to end in marriage.
She wanted to be married in the temple, and she knew that if Bill
continued to smoke cigarets they would not get to the temple.
When graduation time came, Bill offered a formal proposal to
Helen and asked her to set the date of their wedding. She thought
it over long and seriously. She loved Bill a very great deal and did
not like the idea of losing him. But neither did she like the idea of
marrying a smoking man, one who could not take her into the temple
where she had wanted to go.
After some days' consideration, Helen finally came to the con-
clusion that when school was out, Bill would be separated from this
group of boys and that possibly, if she married him, under her in-
fluence he might leave off the bad habits which he had acquired and
get back into activity in the Church. And then, probably within a
year or so, they could go to the temple together; so she consented,
and they were married by her bishop in her living room at home.
A year or so went by, and a lovely baby boy was born to them.
They called him John. In due time another boy was born to them.
They called him James, but he was soon known as Jim.
Bill loved his two boys, and every night after he came home from
work, he would play with them and have just a grand time. He would
hold them way above his head and laugh at them and talk to them,
and they would laugh back. Then he would bring them down and
hug them to him.
This show of affection made Helen very happy, but Bill played
with them while he had a cigaret in his mouth, and when Helen saw
those little baby hands reach out for that smoldering white thing be-
tween Bill's lips, her heart sank, and she began to wonder what that
example might mean in the future lives of those boys.
Years went by. John became twenty years of age and was
called on a mission. He was thrilled with the call and so was his
mother. Bill — well, on the night of the farewell testimonial, Bill sat
on the stand with his wife and son and he was just about as proud
as any father could be, because John was really a remarkably fine
young man.
About three weeks after John's departure for his mission, Bill
was sitting one evening in front of the big, open fireplace in the living
room reading the evening paper and smoking a cigaret. While he
was doing so, in came Jim, a young man by this time. Jim said, "Hi,
Dad."
Without looking up from his paper, Bill said, "Hello, Son. How
are you?"
"I'm fine, Dad. I want to ask you a question."
"All right, Son, what is it?"
"What's the best brand of cigarets?"
Bill stiffened in his chair. For a moment it seemed as if he were
frozen there. Then his hands relaxed, and the paper slipped from
40 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Day
his fingers and fell to the floor. He flipped his cigaret over into the
open fire and then stood up and faced his son.
He said, "Jim, you cannot start to smoke."
"But I have started already, and I want to know what is the
best brand of cigarets?" «■
"Son, I am telling you," Bill said, "you cannot start to smoke."
"Well, why not, Dad? You've smoked as long as I can remem-
ber, and it hasn't hurt you any. I've watched you."
Those last words Jim spoke cut into Bill's heart. "I've watched
you. I've watched you." Then Helen was right, Bill thought to him-
self. All these years Helen had told him that his cigaret habit — the
example he was holding before his sons — would result like this, and
he had never believed her. Now Helen was right. Here was Jim
saying, "I've watched you. I've watched you."
Then Bill felt a consciousness of guilt, a note of self-accusation,
and there were words going through his mind saying, "I taught him.
I taught him. I taught him."
Bill shook himself and walked over to his son and took hold of
both shoulders and looked him square in the eye and said, "Son, you
say these cigarets didn't ever hurt me. And you say you've watched
me. I want you to know that these cigarets have done me more
harm than anything else in my life. Nothing has hurt me, nothing
has handicapped me so much as these cigarets. Why, I'd give any-
thing that I own if I had never started to use them, and I don't want
to see the same handicaps come to you. Why, Jim, these cigarets
have raised a barrier between me and happiness right here in my own
home, and they have caused your mother many hours of weeping.
I know that, and I don't want you to undertake a habit of this kind."
He talked so earnestly and so unusually that Jim at first thought
that his Dad was putting on an act and told him so. Again Bill be-
gan to talk and plead with his son never to smoke again, to get rid
of this habit that he had just begun.
Then Jim, realizing that his dad was really serious, said, "Well,
Dad, if this cigaret habit is so bad, why haven't you quit?"
Bill said, "I've tried to quit. I've tried many times, but I have
never been able to — the habit is too strong. I'm just like a slave to
this ciga/et and I don't want you to become a slave. Now, Son, cut it
out."
Jim said, "Well, Dad, you see all the fellows I go with — they all
smoke. They'll think I'm a sissy. I couldn't face those fellows and
tell them I wasn't going to smoke any more. They are the most
popular crowd I know.
Bill said, "Popular or not, stop this habit and if necessary get a
new crowd. Find new friends who don't smoke, but let cigarets
alone."
Jim said, "Well, I don't know whether I can do that or not.
I'll have to think this over."
ELDER MARK E. PETERSEN
41
Then his dad said, "Jim, I'll make a bargain with you. If you'll
quit smoking, I'll quit."
Jim, quick as a flash said, "Well, Dad, you just told me you
couldn't quit. Are you trying to lead me along?"
Bill's answer to that was that he walked over to the fireplace,
put his hand in his pocket, pulled out the package of cigarets and
the folder of matches, and threw them into the open fireplace. Then
he turned around and faced his son and said, "Son, I've quit. I'm
all through. Now, will you do the same thing?"
"Well I don't know, Dad, I've got to think this over," Jim said.
"I'll tell you in the morning."
That night Bill couldn't sleep. He rolled and tossed in bed as
long as he could stand it and then got up and went into the living
room and closed the door. He didn't turn on the lights. He just
walked the floor there in the dark. Jim's words kept going through
his head, "I've watched you. I've watched you," followed by his
own sense of self-accusation, "I taught him. I taught him."
It had been a long time since Bill had said a prayer. He had
left that pretty much with Helen. But this night he wanted more
than anything else to have Jim quit smoking; so there in the dark-
ness and the stillness of his home he slipped down on his knees and
began to pray. He poured out his soul to the Lord and told him all
of his faults and shortcomings, confessed all of his sins to the Lord —
the first time he'd ever done that. Then he told the Lord about Jim
and their conversation of the evening.
He didn't pray with much faith. The cigarets had pretty well
weakened what faith he had, but he did pray from a sense of fear —
fear for the future of that boy; and from a sense of love — love for
a son for whom he would give his own life, if necessary. But it
seemed like asking a great deal of the Lord to erase in one night an
example which he had held before his son ever since that son was a
tiny baby.
At last morning came. Bill slowly climbed the stairs up to Jim's
room and went in and sat down on the edge of the bed. He put
one hand on Jim's shoulder. Jim turned over, and Bill said, "Son,
what's your answer?"
Jim looked up into his dad's tired face and sleepless eyes and
said, "Dad, I surely don't want to hurt your feelings, but the fellows
— I couldn't face them. I guess I won't quit. I'll wait awhile."
Deeply disappointed but without saying another word, Bill got
up and walked slowly out of the room. He felt like he had been
whipped. But he was more than ever determined to keep his own
resolution. He would never go back to his cigarets.
The next Sunday he went to Church, the first time in years. He
went again the next Sunday and the next, and he continued to go
and enjoyed it.
About a year afterwards the bishop came to him one day and
said, "Bill, how would you like to be ordained an elder?"
42 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday. September 29 First Day
A lump came into Bill's throat, and his eyes filled with tears as
he took hold of the bishop's hand and said, "Bishop, do you mean
that at last I can take Helen to the temple?"
The bishop squeezed his hand and said, "Yes, Bill, at last you
can take Helen to the temple."
Another year went by, and John came home from his mission.
One day when John and his father were alone together, John went
over and put his arm around his dad and said, "Dad, I want you to
know how deeply grateful I am to you for the wonderful thing you
have done. You know, as a boy I always used to think that my dad
was just about perfect, and I guess every boy thinks that his dad is
the greatest man in the world. But every time you took a cigaret,
it hurt me deep inside. I knew you had a weakness you couldn't
control. But now, Dad, all that is over, and I want you to know how
grateful I am to you."
But what about Jim? Well, Jim is married now and has a little
boy of his own, and he comes home at night and plays with this boy
just as Bill used to play with Jim. And when Jim gets his own little
son up in his arms, that little baby, just as his father did, reaches out
for that smoldering white thing between his dad's lips.
The other day I rode home on the bus with Bill, and he was
telling me how happy he is in his new life. And then he told me about
Jim, and said that if nearly twenty years of a bad example would
put Jim where he now is, possibly another twenty years of a good
example might bring him back to where he ought to be. And I
thought, "God bless you, Bill."
And God bless all other men like him in the wonderful struggle
they are making for the right.
And God bless Jim and all other boys like him that they may
recognize tobacco for what it is — a narcotic which enslaves human
beings and helps to destroy their faith in God. This is my prayer,
in Jesus' name. Amen.
ELDER FRANCIS A. CHILD
Formerly President of the Western States Mission
My dear brethren and sisters, Brother Clifford Young said that
it is a challenge to any man to stand before this audience. I bear my
humble testimony that to a Child it's more than that.
Sister Child and I are very appreciative and thankful for the
call we received to preside over one of the great missions of the
Church. We arrived in Denver in December of '45 to take charge of
the Western States Mission. You remember that that was following
the war and we had, to begin with, just nineteen missionaries. They
were pretty well scattered over that vast area, but we felt that the
Lord would bless us if we would apply ourselves to the work. We
asked the Lord to bless our labors, but we can't expect him to bless
ELDER FRANCIS A. CHILD
43
our labors unless we labor. We appreciated this call very much,
first because it brought us under closer supervision and in close con-
tact with the Presidency of the Church whom we love very dearly
and, with them the Quorum of the Twelve and the other General
Authorities of the Church. They have been so considerate and so
kind personally and have given so much attention to the mission
where we labored, that we feel very grateful to them.
We have a very happy memory of our tours of the mission, first
with Milton R. Hunter, and then with Elder Harold B. Lee, with
President Antoine R. Ivins and Sister Ivins, and with Thomas E.
McKay, as Assistant to the twelve, and Sister McKay. These were
all very wonderful experiences. To travel day after day and to hold
conference every night with these men and women who are inspired
of the Lord to do the work is an unusual experience and one you
can't forget.
We had some wonderful missionaries come to us. We received
the first missionaries from the war service. They came out of the
Army, off the battleships, and out of the airplanes, and yet they
were marvelous missionaries. They had received an experience that
matured them and gave them qualities of leadership, and it was won-
derful to know that they had been in those situations without losing
the testimony which they had carried from their homes and from
their wards. We received in the four years we were there 367 mis-
sionaries. Most of them were elders and considering the fact, as I
said, that most of them had had service in the Army or the Navy, it
was remarkable to know that not in one instance did we have occasion
to criticize any missionary, any elder, for violation of the Word of
Wisdom or for disregarding the standards of the Church. That
speaks very highly for the training that they had received previous
to their missionary experience.
I would like to thank the friends out in the mission field, I hope
some of them are listening in, for the friendly assistance given to
our missionaries. They were so kind and so considerate and so help-
ful. I am sure the Lord will recognize their work as a contribution
to the great missionary service of the Church, and were Christ speak-
ing, I'm sure he would say that in being kind to these my brethren
and sisters, you were kind to me because they are my servants.
As I said before, we had only nineteen missionaries in the field
when we went out, and then they began coming ten at a time, twelve
at a time, fifteen at a time. We would hold a little conference with
them, have a testimony meeting, and then assign them out. I as-
signed two elders together in a new city who had never had any ex-
perience in missionary work with senior companions to show them the
way. That was a test period in the mission, but it's remarkable how
the Lord sustained them.
One of our problems was to find accommodations in the homes
of people where they could stay while they did their labors, but the
Lord opened the way. Let me give you one example: We desired
44 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 Pint Day
to send two sisters to Lajunta, Colorado where we were opening up
the work. Two elders were sent there first and they tried to find some
place in which the sisters could stay before they moved there. They
couldn't find any place, but we told the sisters to go there and we
were sure the Lord would provide a place for them; not to be dis-
couraged, but to go there and put an advertisement in the paper.
They did that and on reaching Lajunta they put a small ad in the
paper which read "Room desired in a home with cooking privileges,
for two young women who do not smoke and do not drink and do not
entertain." The paper came out at 5:00 o'clock and at 8:00 o'clock
they had three or four offers. The ad ran three days and at the end
of three days, they had seventeen places to choose from. One good
old couple said, "Yes, we have a place in our home for young women
like that. The last ones we had stay at our home burned us out.
Yes, if there are any young people that do not smoke, if there are any
young women that do not drink and do not entertain, we would
like to have them in our home." And so by using that advertise-
ment, holding up our standards, places were provided in every city
to which missionaries were assigned without any difficulty.
I wish to thank the parents of those wonderful young men and
young women who came to us. They were remarkable — some had
their weaknesses that they had to overcome, but they were great
missionaries.
It is a remarkable experience to be a mission president. I think
no greater blessing can come to any man in the Church, and no
greater blessing can come to a sister than to be along with her hus-
band in that presiding position. We watched them come, new, in-
experienced, bashful, and backward, timid, and just as tense as they
could be. They were uncertain of their testimonies, but they were
• willing. They accepted their assignment, sometimes in a difficult
part of the mission. And they applied themselves and as they applied
themselves, they prayed to our Heavenly Father and he blessed them.
We watched them grow and then we watched them when they were
released. They had gained spiritual stature. They had become strong
in their testimony. They were self-reliant. They could stand on their
feet and declare their faith and uphold the standards of the Church.
I know those young men and young women would all, if they had
the opportunity, stand up and say, honestly, that the two years or
so spent in the mission field were the most wonderful two years of
their lives. And I think they will continue to say that as long as
they live.
A gentleman attended one of our conferences who had been the
president of a university, and after he had listened to the testimonies
of the missionaries, especially the elders, he said it reminded him of
when he was a young man and performed a mission, He said: "Since
that time I have completed my schooling, I have held various posi-
tions as an educator, and finally was appointed and selected as a
president of a university, and I want to tell you now that the ex-
ELDER GLENN G. SMITH
45
perience that I received when I was a young man in the mission field
did more for me in making me what I am than all the schooling I
received that prepared me for my educational career."
You mothers and fathers, I would admonish you to prepare
your children to accept a mission. I say prepare because I think it
should start early in life. So often our missionaries in their first testi-
mony express this thought: "I have prayed all my life that I would
have this opportunity and now I sincerely pray to my Heavenly
Father that I'll be a successful missionary." Start them out with the
missionary spirit early. You couldn't do anything better for them.
If you would give them the greatest heritage, the richest heritage,
that could come to them, send them on a mission. If you would
qualify them to meet the problems of life, send them on a mission.
I am sure that what they receive there will be a blessing to them
and will qualify them in their after years and throughout their lives.
May the Lord bless us all and keep us faithful through apply-
ing ourselves to the work which has been given to us for it's our
work, given to us for a definite responsibility, and we accept that
responsibility when we accept membership in the Church. May he
help us to magnify ourselves in that service, I pray, in the name of
Jesus Christ, Amen.
ELDER GLENN G. SMITH
Formerly President of the Texas-Louisiana Mission
I can say amen, brothers and sisters, to all President Child has
said regarding the missionaries and also of the fear that is in my
heart in standing before such a magnificent congregation.
We, too, spent four years in the mission field in the Texas-
Louisiana Mission, and, as all good missionaries say, "Ours was the
best mission in the world. We learned to love those mild, gentle
people and that wonderful Southland. We began to believe it truly
the Garden of Eden. The hearts of the people were so big and gen-
erous we couldn't help but feel that part of this land must have been
the Garden of Eden. And, as proof that it was, we read that Adam
and Eve were driven out into the cold, and dreary world, and the
prophet found his altar north of Texas. We were wonderfully
blessed in being permitted to labor among the people of this great
mission.
There were twelve missionaries when we arrived at Houston —
no young Elders at all. The lady missionaries who were there
labored in the office. There were some elderly brethren in the field.
Also three couples. These missionaries did a wonderful work. One
couple performed a most wonderful mission, baptizing thirty-seven
converts into the Church. They also sold over six hundred copies
of the Book of Mormon in two years.
46 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Fridag, September 29 F'"t Dag
When the young missionaries began to come, and there were
no older ones for senior companions, how our hearts went out to
them. I well remember one in particular saying to me, "President
Smith, haven't we a senior companion?" I said, "No." "Well, what
will we do?" "You will go out in the authority of the holy priest-
hood of Almighty God. You'll bear your testimony of the divinity of
this great work and as you apply yourself, God will grant unto you
wisdom, understanding, vision, and discernment. You will be able
to meet the opposition in a sweet and humble way and you will be
the means in God's hands in performing his work." I bear solemn
testimony to you, my brothers and sisters, these young men and
women went into the world with faith in their hearts and a determi-
nation to do the thing the Lord wanted done and they performed a
most magnificent work.
The population of the mission so far as the Church was con-
cerned was approximately 7700 at that time. Before we left it had
climbed to almost 10,000. The missionaries have been successful in
that area. With due respect to President J. Golden Kimball's state-
ment, "that the Gospel must be true or the Elders would have ruined
it long ago," I know each one of these fine missionaries knows the
Gospel is true. These young men and young women, your sons
and daughters, have strong and fervent testimonies of the divinity
of the great work. I, too, like Brother Child, can say that the best
thing you can do for your sons and your daughters is to plant deep
in their hearts at a young age a desire to represent the General
Authorities of this great Church and Jesus the Redeemer of mankind,
in bringing souls to him. "For though they labor all the days of
their lives and bring but one soul, how great will be their joy with
that one soul in the kingdom of our Father."
In conclusion may I quote from Edgar A. Guest.
God grant me this: the right to come at night
Back to my loved ones, head erect and true;
Beaten and bruised and from a losing light,
Let me be proud in what I've tried to do.
Let me come home defeated if I must,
But clean of hands, and honor unimpaired.
Still holding firmly to my children's trust,
Still worthy of the faith which they have shared.
God grant me this: what e'er the fates decree,
Or do I win or lose life's little game,
I still would keep my children proud of me.
Nor once regret that they must bear my name.
God bless us as Latter-day Saints. That we may all measure
up in the eyes of our children, as we feel our parents have so nobly
done before us, I pray, in Jesus' name, Amen.
ELDER E. WESLEY SMITH
47
ELDER E. WESLEY SMITH
Formerly President of the Hawaiian Mission
I sincerely trust and pray that I may enjoy the Spirit of the
Lord which was so manifest during our sessions this morning and
this afternoon. I will say "Hawaii Noka noi!" That is, there is no
mission that goes beyond or exceeds Hawaii.
I have had the privilege of laboring among the true blood of
Israel, through the loins of Joseph, through the two branches of the
House of Israel — Ephraim and Manassa — a people whom the Lord
loves — a people whom the Lord chastens and forgives because of
their great faith.
Hawaii, during the past one hundred years, has been greatly
blessed because of the faith of that wonderful people. The Lord has
blessed them with a Temple, where they have the privilege of going
into the House of the Lord. And they look upon that house with
sacred feelings in their hearts. Would that you could have the priv-
ilege of attending one of the sessions in the Hawaiian Temple at
Laie and witness there the sincerity and the honor they feel for the
privilege which is theirs in going into that holy house.
I feel it within my heart that I am an Hawaiian. I was born in
Hawaii. I made that statement once that I was an Hawaiian and
one boy spoke out in that little meeting and said, "You don't look
like it to me."
I said, "Son, why?"
And he said, "Because you haven't got the same color skin."
I said, "No, son, that's true. I haven't been blessed with that
delicate, brown, lovely skin of the Hawaiian, but if you could see
my heart, you could note that I am an Hawaiian."
I love that people because of their faith and their love and their
respect for the General Authorities of this Church. When the Presi-
dent of the Church visited them, they honored and respected him,
and they love him as their prophet. When they say their morning
prayers and at night, they remember their prophet. They remember
the General Authorities of the Church for they love them. And when
the counsel goes out from the headquarters unto that wonderful peo-
ple, they heed that counsel and they honor it.
The Lord said that they should become a white and delightsome
people. They are a delightsome people and I feel, when they stand
before God and their souls are presented before him you'll find that
they are a white and delightsome people. We are not judged by the
clothes we wear, nor the skin that covers these bodies but God will
judge us by the purity and the love and the sincerity that's in our
hearts.
The mission of Hawaii has also produced a Stake. It stands well
among the leaders of the Stakes of this great Church. They have
produced many missionaries. During the past year and a half it has
48 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday. September 29 First Day
been my joy to present before the First Presidency ten names of
Hawaiians for missionary work, and they honored these fine young
people and all ten were assigned to labor in the Japanese Mission,
in Japan. And they are doing good work. I would like to relate one
little incident of Brother William Akau from Kawaihae, a fisherman
boy, a boy who was out to sea fishing for a living. He was called
on a mission. He said, "I'm not learned. I haven't had a college
education, but I know that God lives and I know that Joseph Smith
was a divine prophet of God." And so he hung his net upon a branch
of a Kiawi tree and he went forth to preach the Gospel of Jesus
Christ and become a fisherman of men. In bearing his testimony, he
declared that he prayed sincerely and honestly that he might perform
an honorable mission and when his work was completed in the land
of Japan, that he could return to his little village at Kawaihae and
there pick up his net on the Kiawi tree and go fishing again. Another
stalwart boy had only been in the Church two years, married, and
had a lovely baby. His mother was not a member of the Church and
so I spoke to the mother first, about his going on a mission. He was
a boy who was well provided with the necessities and comforts of
life, and the mother said: "Yes, President Smith, it would be an
honor unto us to have our son go on a mission." Then I spoke to
his wife. She cried with joy, "What a grand blessing it would be
for my husband to go on a mission."
"How would you get along?"
"Very well, with my baby to comfort me."
"Then I spoke to the boy, who had just purchased him a brand
new 1948 Packard automobile, "Kimo, how would you like to ac-
cept a mission?"
"President Smith, I would appreciate the honor."
I said, "I have interviewed your mother and your wife; they feel
as you do."
And so his name was presented to the First Presidency. He was
called upon a mission. He went to Japan with his music. President
Clissold reports to me that during the time of study when he could
hear the other missionaries studying aloud, this good boy was off
in the corner of the room playing his guitar. His first impression was
to correct that and have him join the other missionaries in studying
the language, but he said he felt perhaps that he was homesick. Then
a day or two later again he was playing his music while the others
were studying. President Clissold hesitated, then, to speak and the
third time he said: "Well, perhaps I had better speak to him." But
that morning he called on him to pray. In that little family group
of missionaries, he got down upon his knees and he humbly prayed
in the Japanese language. It was not a memorized prayer. President
Clissold said it came from his heart, and he marveled. The next
morning he was called upon to offer prayer for the food they were
ELDER E. WESLEY SMITH
49
eating, and again in the language of the Japanese he prayed. He said,
"How are you learning this language, Kimo?"
"Well he said, "You know I go off in a room with my guitar and
while the other missionaries are talking one with another and ex-
plaining the principles of the language I listen. It goes in this ear,
the music goes in that ear and it can't get out. And thus, I've
learned the Japanese language."
I am proud of our missionaries in Japan. It seems to be easy
for them to learn the language among that people.
And another thing they have taken into that land is kindness
and sunshine, and love for the music of Hawaii. Through the war
clouds over Japan and their defeat, and they were crushed, they
could see no light, they could see no joy in life, the clouds were
heavy over them; but when the Hawaiians arrived on the shores
of Japan with their cheer, with their great love, and their music,
the darkest of the clouds fled and light came through; their souls
were touched with a new interest in life.
I attended a meeting on the island of Lanai, an island that
stands out prominent in the history of Hawaii and the Church.
Time will not permit to give you the story. At one time in Hawaii
in 1858 when the missionaries were all called forth because of the
Johnston Army trouble coming into Utah, a condition existed in
Hawaii whereby the Church was practically destroyed. The Saints
endeavored to buy the Island of Lanai. An unscrupulous man by
the name of Walter M. Gibson, cheated the natives out of the
land which was being purchased by the Church. The great grand-
father of Elder Benson, Lorenzo Snow, Joseph F. Smith, W. W.
Cluff, and Alma L. Smith were called to go back to Hawaii to
reorganize the mission and establish again proper leadership. In
later years the island was sold to the Hawaiian Pineapple Company.
At the present time 3500 people live upon that island. We en-
deavored to establish a meeting place over there. We sent our
missionaries to that island. A little over three years ago they gave
us a six months probation period and we have built a meetinghouse,
helped by the plantation, and we established a nice little branch
where we put our elders to labor. In that length of time we had
gained the respect of the Hawaiian Pineapple Company. They are
very generous to us. We have a nice meeting house, a recreation
hall free, and our light and water free. They furnished us paint
that we might paint the building and maintain it. So we have taken
a pride in our lot and we have nice flowers and a beautiful lawn
which is a credit to the Church. In my last meeting on Lanai we
had 145 present, Hawaiians, 43; Japanese, 31; Philippinos, 39; Chi-
nese, 10; Koreans, 9; Portugese, 2; and our whites who were mainly
missionaries, 11. To mingle with the peoples of Hawaii who as-
sociate together as one, and when you labor among them, they are
no longer Japanese, Koreans' Philippinos, Hawaiians; they are chil-
50 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Friday, September 29 First Day
dren of God, brothers and sisters, who have that same feeling in
their souls that we have who are assembled here in this holy house.
Much work is being done at the present time among the
Philippino peoples and when you get to know them and understand
them, you will find that they have the same sweet feelings in their
hearts that the Hawaiians have. They are very generous in their
natures. Over in Pahalla, the farthest place south on the big island
of Hawaii, most of the people in that little branch are Philippines,
and when we held our little meeting there and bade them farewell
and could see their eyes fill with tears and their cheeks moistened
we felt to thank God that we had had the privilege and joy of as-
sociating with His children, though they have not had the privilege
we have had.
At our farewell social and our meeting in the Temple, the land
of my birth, ( I was born in Laie ) , after the talk, Brother Kanahele,
the first counselor in the presidency of the Temple, said, "President
Smith, you have hurt our feelings."
I said, "What did I say? What did I do to hurt your feelings?"
He said, "You have been released and you are returning home."
He said, "This is your home and therefore you have hurt our feel-
ings."
From then on I remembered that, and so, I, in our farewell
meeting mentioned the fact that I was leaving the land of my birth
and returning to my adopted land, and thus they seemed to be
pleased.
We have listened to President Cowley's talk, his feelings to-
ward Polynesia. Sister Smith and I know how he feels. Our
hearts are out there in Hawaii. When I see our beloved sisters,
Abbie and Kamaile, here, stalwart in the Church — I have known
them for many years — how pleased I am that they are here with
us.
Now, may the Lord bless us and may the Lord sustain us
and give us courage to stand for the right and above all, that when
we sustain the General Authorities of the Church by raising our
hands, may we be sincere and honest in that privilege that is ours
to sustain them, and when they give us counsel that might be con-
trary to a feeling that we have within our hearts, let's uphold them
and sustain them, because they are inspired of God and they are
prophets of the Lord. May the Lord sustain us and bless us in
this and give us courage to do that which is right, is my humble
prayer and I pray for it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
We have just listened to Elder E. Wesley Smith, former Presi-
dent of the Hawaiian Mission.
The Relief Society Singing Mothers will now sing "He That
Keepeth Israel."
PRESIDENT J. REUBEN CLARK, JR.
51
The closing prayer will be offered by President Edward S.
Burgess, Alpine Stake, Utah, after which this Conference will stand
adjourned until 10:00 o'clock tomorrow. The proceedings of that
session will be broadcast over KSL of Salt Lake City, and by
arrangement through KSL, over the stations named in the first
session of the Conference, and will be televised over the KSL
television station, channel five.
Tonight at seven o'clock here in the Tabernacle there will be
a meeting of ward bishoprics and others as listed in the published
announcement, under the direction of the Presiding Bishopric.
Important calls and messages coming to us for persons supposed
to be in attendance at the Conference will be announced at the
dismissal of this meeting over the loud speaking system on the
grounds.
The Choir music for today has been furnished by the Combined
Chorus of Singing Mothers from the Cache Region and Salt Lake
City Stakes, under the direction of Sister Florence Jepperson Mad-
sen, with Elder Frank W. Asper at the organ.
We ought not to close this meeting without expressing the
gratitude which we have for the Singing Mothers and Sister Mad-
sen, for the excellent music which they have furnished to us. There
has been a spirit and soul in it that does not always attach to great
choruses. May the Lord bless them always.
Singing by the Relief Society Singing Mothers: "He That
Keepeth Israel."
Closing prayer was offered by President Edward S. Burgess
of the Alpine Stake.
Conference adjourned until Saturday morning, September 30th,
at 10:00 o'clock.
SECOND DAY
MORNING MEETING
The third session of the Conference convened at 10:00 a.m.,
Saturday, September 30.
President George Albert Smith was present and presided.
President David O. McKay, Second Counselor in the First Presi-
dency, at the request of President Smith, conducted these services.
The Deseret Stake Choir, under the leadership of Elder Ladd
R. Cropper, furnished the choir music for this session. Elder Roy
M. Darley, Assistant Tabernacle organist, was at the console.
President David O. McKay:
We are now ready to open the third session of the One Hundred
52 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
Twenty-first Semi-Annual Conference of the Church. We are
convened in the Tabernacle on Temple Square in Salt Lake City,
Utah.
Presiding at this session is President George Albert Smith,
President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and
conducting, at President Smith's request, is David O. McKay, his
second counselor.
These services and all general sessions of the Conference will
be broadcast in the Assembly Hall and Barratt Hall over a loud
speaking system and by television.
The proceedings of this session will be broadcast over station
KSL, Salt Lake City, and by arrangement through KSL, over the
stations named in the first session of the Conference. This session
will also be televised over KSL television station, channel five.
The singing for this session will be furnished by the Deseret
Stake Choir, Elder Ladd R. Cropper, director, and Elder Roy M.
Darley at the organ.
We shall begin the services by the Deseret Stake Choir sing-
ing: "Come, Come Ye Saints," after which the opening prayer will
be offered by President Reed H. Beckstead of the East Jordan Stake.
The Choir sang the hymn "Come, Come Ye Saints."
The opening prayer was offered by President Reed H. Beck-
stead of the East Jordan Stake.
The Choir then sang "Spirit of God."
ELDER ANTOINE R IVINS
Of the First Council of Seventy
My beloved brethren and sisters, as I stand before you this
morning to add my testimony to those that have already been given
you in this conference, I seek an interest in your faith and prayers.
I pray that what I say may be prompted by the Spirit of God, that
out of it' may possibly come a word of encouragement for some of
us; for my sole purpose, in ministering as I am called to do to the
seventies and to the Church generally is to be helpful, to stimulate
if I can the faith and the courage of the members of the Church.
It has been very wisely said that he who carries a lantern to
light the pathway of his brother sees more clearly his own. I must
confess that in trying to encourage others, I gain courage, strength,
and faith. It is in a spirit of love that I minister and help those that
need it, if I can, realizing at the same time that I get joy and satis-
faction out of it.
Visit to Canadian Mission
Only a week ago Sister Ivins and I returned from a visit to
the Canadian Mission, where we had the privilege of listening to
ELDER ANTOINE R. IVINS
53
the testimonies of almost 160 of your sons and daughters; where we
heard their expressions of faith and their determination to carry
on and further the work to which they have been called in the
service of God. It was our purpose to encourage and to stimulate
them in their faith, to help if we could, to surmount any obstacles
that had presented themselves to them. Also, it was our purpose
to encourage the members of the Church in that area, to help them.
I was very pleased to discover what I think is an awakening
among the people of that area. In some of the meetings we had
more investigators than members, after excluding the missionaries.
Rather large groups of investigators were present. In some sections
we had the privilege of meeting people of Jewish ancestry who
have come into the Church. That and other experiences that I
have had in other missions of the Church seem to indicate to me
that there is an awakening of interest among the people with whom
we labor. I hope it is real. I hope it is an indication of an in-
creasing faith on the part of the people and their dependence upon
the Lord for his blessings. I hope it doesn't come from fear of
the present conditions that prevail in the world but rather from a
sincere desire to serve God and enjoy the blessings that come from
the companionship of his Holy Spirit.
They expect in the Canadian Mission to baptize more people
than they did last year. By a missionary who returned the other
day from one of the missions, I was told that in a single month the
missionaries had baptized almost as many people as in some previ-
ous years in the same territory. As I said, I hope it indicates a true
increase in interest and desire on the part of the people to approach
God and get nearer to him. And I hope that same spirit exists
among us who are here at home. I wish to assure the fathers and
mothers of those missionaries in the Canadian Mission that their
leadership is good, that the president of that mission has only the
welfare of the work and the welfare of the missionaries at heart,
that it is my judgment that he enjoys the Spirit of God in his minis-
try, that his wife is supporting him loyally and well. The mission-
aries are without exception in the enjoyment of health.
Need for Faith
This is a time when we need faith, faith of a very definite and
positive nature, the faith that will lead us to optimism. I believe
that pessimism grows out of a lack of faith, and that if we have the
right type of faith, we will be optimistic about the future. It may be
true that the immediate future may have difficulties for us, but I
feel that out of it all will grow a realization of the purposes of God.
And it should be our purpose to develop and maintain in our hearts,
if we can, faith in God and in the ultimate consummation of his
purposes — a faith that will unite us in a solid, coherent group. We
must, of course, in order to do that, develop faith in each other.
54 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday. September 30 Second Day
Without that faith we are not likely to go far in promoting the
work of the Lord. We must have a faith that will encourage our
returning missionaries. I find as I interview them, that they are
uncertain. They don't know just what is going to happen to them
because of present chaotic conditions, but we must try to develop
in their hearts faith and reliance on God that will enable them to
plan as they would like to plan, and then carry on even though
those plans may be temporarily interrupted; the faith that will lead
us to the ultimate consummation of the purposes of God, faith that
will help us to cooperate, that out of cooperation may come strength.
If we could properly unite our efforts, all of our temporal difficulties
could be overcome, I am sure. If and when we overcome, it will
be only because we unite in our purpose through faith in each other.
Results of Cooperation
I want to tell you a very pretty little thing that I once saw that
illustrates the result of cooperation. Most of you know that I spent
a time in Mexico. One time as I was riding on a cold, frosty morn-
ing through the Sierra Madre Mountains, I ran on to a little covey
of Messina partridges. It was cold, and they got together for self-
protection. I noticed that each one of those birds had spread his
wings, and they had so intertwined them that their bodies were
completely covered as a shield from the frost and the cold; only
their heads stuck up above that covering. And they survived. With-
out that united effort of self-protection, they might have succumbed
to the weather. But with it, they came through in comfort, I am
sure.
Now if we could so put out our arms and shield each other, if
we could so support each other through the faith that we should
have in each other, then all the righteous purposes of God as far
as this group of people is concerned, I am sure, could be realized.
Can we develop that faith? I think we should; I think it could
come as a result of a positive effort on our part.
Improvements Noted
I have been checking the records of the various stakes that I
have visited all this year, and in many respects I notice, as com-
pared with previous years, that there is a better condition indicated
in those reports, the condition of greater faith. There are some
items that show slipping, but many of them show improvement in
the stakes that I have visited. The use of liquor and tobacco seems
to be decreasing, if I can trust those statistics. The number of peo-
ple who hold family prayers seems to be on the increase. The num-
ber of people, the percentage of those in the Melchizedek Priesthood
who observe the Sabbath seems to be on the increase. I noticed in
a stake that I visited recently that the attendance at sacrament meet-
ing has been on a steady increase, showing a rising curve over the
ELDER ELDRED G. SMITH
55
last few years. I hope that these indications are real, that they
show a real determination on our part to live closer to God and
serve him better.
Strive for Perfection
I love this service; I love the people. I am always encouraged
when I see these signs of faith on their part. We're never perfect —
we will never be perfect — but we should strive for perfection, and
the development of faith is the thing that will bring it. My faith
prompts me to believe that God has a design for the world that
he expects us to realize. And the best way for us to do that is to
pay attention to today. Yesterday has gone. It will never come
back. Today is always with us so long as we live. Tomorrow is
a hope only, so today we must look to ourselves, to our behavior,
look to our faith in ourselves and in God. If we are satisfied with
it, all well and good! If we are not, let's increase it. Let's make such
changes in our program and in our attitudes that will increase that
faith. I have said we should have faith in each other. We should
have faith in our leadership, in the ward, in the stake, in the gen-
eral officers of the Church. I stand here to bear testimony to you
that in all my associations with the leadership of the Church above
me, I have seen nothing but honest purpose. Let's try and develop
that type of faith. Let's develop a loyalty to the organization that
will prompt us to live its standards. Overcoming the temptations
of the world and living the standards of the Church should be a
matter of loyalty to us, a matter of self-discipline. We should take
pride in ourselves that we can live the will of the Church, whether
we always know the reason for it or not. It is my feeling and my
testimony that out of the inspiration of God which comes to these
brethren, comes a policy for the Church that is wise and well-
designed, that will be for the welfare and the progress of every
man and every woman that will follow it.
May God g^ive us this faith in ourselves, faith in those who
lead us, faith in our ultimate destiny that will enable us to carry
on, without misgivings and without fear, into the future; that will
enable us to carve out our destiny; that will ultimately bring us
back to the presence of God in exaltation, I pray, and I do it in the
name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER ELDRED G. SMITH
Patriarch to the Church
I have paid particular attention in this conference to the prayers
that have been offered. They have been indeed a good example
for all of us to follow. I hope that I will receive in turn my full
share of prayers asked in behalf of those who take part here in this
conference as I am sure those who have preceded me have received.
56 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday. September 30 Second Day
In the beginning, as Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden
of Eden, they were shut out from the presence of the Lord, but
the Lord did not expect them to be without some contact with him.
That one avenue he left open for man to reach God while in this
life of mortality was prayer; so Adam called upon God, and he
received guidance in all things. Neither does God expect us to get
along without his help. Throughout the Old and New Testaments
and the Book of Mormon the Lord gave instructions to pray con-
stantly. The Doctrine and Covenants is filled with like exhorta-
tions. The disciples asked the Savior on one occasion, "Lord,
teach us to pray."
Pray to Father
Among other things the Lord said, "Pray to our Father in
heaven." And herein, I think that we need to be careful, because
very often we open our prayer with the expression of praying to
our Father in heaven, then during the prayer we use the term
"Lord," and before we are through it is hard to tell whether we
are addressing the Father or his Son, Jesus Christ. We should
pray to our Father in heaven, for he is indeed the Father of all
mankind on the earth, and because he is our Father, he wants us
to come to him often with our joys and our sorrows and thank
him for all that he has given us. Then the Savior gave us a good
suggestive sample of the things to pray for and how to pray. (See
Luke 11:1-2.)
As Jesus told his Disciples, our Father in heaven knows what
we are in need of before we start; yet he has commanded us to
pray. He wants us to be thoughtful of others as we are of our-
selves. "Forgive us as we forgive our debtors." He did not intend
that we should always use the exact words that he gave in the
sample or to use pre-written prayers. In so doing we would become
as those Christ referred to when he said, "They draw near to me
with their lips, but their hearts are far from me," Do you think
Joseph Smith would have received that wonderful manifestation
if he had simply read a prayer? How much of our heart goes into
a prayer of that nature? How much faith can we exercise with
words and thoughts that are not our own? Prayer without faith
is dead, and if we add to the faith which President Ivins has just
spoken to us about, that prayer, I'm sure will have results, and
we'll have an increase of the statistics President Ivins has referred
to in actual fact and continue as such.
Be in Tune
We do not read our prayers in this Church, but some of us get
in almost as bad a rut. We are so bound by set words and phrases
at times that we hardly remember what we are saying. We must
have a spirit of deep humility, of repentance, an open mind, to
ELDER ELDRED G. SMITH
57
receive the will of God. We must not be hampered by any anger
or meanness or hardness of heart, or any selfish desires. We must
tune our minds and our hearts to the Spirit of God just as we tune
our radio to receive the program from the broadcasting station. We
want no interfering static from outside influences. In the attitude
of true repentance we should seek forgiveness of our past mistakes
and guidance for improvement. I like the little poem used so much
in our home:
To say my prayer is not to pray,
Unless I mean the words I say,
Unless I think to whom I speak,
And with my heart his favor seek.
Then let me, when I come to pray,
Not only mean the words I say,
But let me strive with earnest care,
To have my heart go with my prayer.
Sincerity of Children
Unless our whole heart is in what we are doing, we are not
really praying. A child is naturally sincere and can be taught to
pray almost with its first words. His own private prayer should
become a habit never to be broken. If he greets the day with a
prayer for guidance and help, if he goes to sleep with a prayer of
thanksgiving, more than half the battle is won in trying to do right.
The Lord tells us in the Doctrine and Covenants, sixty-eighth sec-
tion, twenty-eighth verse:
And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk up-
rightly before the Lord.
Children will learn more from observation than they ever will
from just being told. If parents have a prayerful attitude, the
children are more than likely to have the same. Family prayer
cannot be too highly praised. In no other way can we obtain such
a spirit of unity, nor is there any better place for the child to
learn to pray in public. The Lord also tells us in the Doctrine and
Covenants, nineteenth section and twenty-eighth verse:
And again, I command thee that thou shalt pray vocally as well as
in thy heart; yea, before the world as well as in secret, in public as well
as in private."
Family Prayer
It is surprising how soon a child can take his turn in family prayer,
and just think of the good that comes to the family. If we kneel
down together and unitedly thank God for his many blessings;
pray for guidance, for peace and love in our hearts; if we pray for
others who are in need; for the advancement of God's work here;
can it help but make our home a better place? Can we help but
58 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
be more thoughtful of others, more kind and loving? A man and
wife who will pray together and pray vocally will have more love
and contentment in their home. If we would learn to call upon
God more often, we should not have to call upon the divorce courts
so much. Teach your children the one source of strength that
will never fail them. Help them to realize that they have an ever-
lasting friend, one that they can call upon when their hearts are
filled with joy as well as when they are filled with doubt or sadness
or despair. Then when they have grown up and are on their
own, living at home, away at school, or in the far-flung battlefields
of war, they have God as their partner; they are not afraid. This
would bring peace, happiness, and joy. A sin-sick world could be
lifted from its depths if we could only turn to the Lord in prayer.
What more could we do for our children? I pronounce the blessings
of God upon all who humbly seek him in prayer, in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER MILTON R. HUNTER
Of the First Council of the Seventy
This is indeed a humbling experience — to occupy this position.
I do, therefore, ask an interest in your faith and prayers and that
the Spirit of God might rest down upon me.
More than two thousand years ago an ancient Hebrew proph-
et, speaking for the Lord, said,
Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein
have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. (Malachi 3:8.)
Faith Exhibited
During the past five and one-half years since I was made a
member of the First Council of the Seventy, I have had the wonder-
ful experience and opportunity to travel throughout the stakes of
Zion and in the mission fields, I have observed with much joy the
great amount of faith expressed and exhibited by the Latter-day
Saints. Thousands and thousands of them are paying their full
tithes and offerings to the Lord, contributing in the welfare pro-
grams, sending their sons and daughters into the mission fields,
and in practically all respects living the gospel of Jesus Christ.
They are doing all of those things and much more because they
know that God lives; they know that Jesus is the Christ and the
Savior of the world; they know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of
God and that the true gospel has been restored through the Prophet
Joseph Smith in our day.
I have ofttimes felt that I am sure God is pleased with the
Church in general and with many of the Latter-day Saints in
particular.
ELDER MILTON R. HUNTER
59
Law of Tithing
On the other hand, however, I have also observed that there
are certain members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints — and possibly thousands of them — who are fulfilling Mala-
chi's prophecy or prediction at the present time. They are robbing
God in tithes and offerings. I've ofttimes thought and have even
expressed the idea that I believe that practically all members of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, if they understood
the law of tithing, thoroughly; that is, if they knew the will of God
in this respect and especially if they could be taught to know of and
appreciate the great spiritual blessings which would be received
as a result of rendering obedience to this law, they would pay their
tithes and offerings to the Lord in full. I have suggested in priest-
hood leadership meetings as I have traveled throughout the Church
that the leaders of the stakes, presidents of quorums, bishops, and
stake presidencies endeavor to teach the people the law of tithing.
Yet I also recognize the fact that there are certain ones in the
Church who would argue against the law. They might say, "But,
Brother Hunter, you quoted Malachi, and he lived four hundred
years before the Savior lived. He was a Hebrew prophet and was
talking to the Jews. Would his teachings apply to us?"
I would answer, "Yes, I know that he was a Hebrew prophet.
He was talking to the Jews, and yet his teachings would apply
definitely to us. Why? Because he was giving us the will of
God — the absolute mind and words of God the Eternal Father which
he had been commanded to teach.
Law Given to Nephites
Now why can I be so definite on that point? Because of an
event that took place after the resurrection of the Savior. The
ressurected Lord appeared to the Nephites here on this continent.
He taught them the same gospel plan that he had given to the Jews
while in mortality. On one occasion he said to them,
After you people left Jerusalem a great prophet of God came among
the Jews and my Father commanded him to teach the people certain
things, and since you haven't a record of what that prophet taught, I
have received instructions from the Father to tell you what Malachi
taught. (See III Nephi 24:1.)
So he gave them the teachings of Malachi and he asked them
to write those teachings down. After this had been done, he ex-
plained to them all that Malachi had taught.
He quoted the exact words of Malachi,
Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say: Wherein
have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. (Ibid., 24:8.)
Now since Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world, the
great Judge, the Redeemer, the very One under whom the gospel
60 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
came to us, the gospel being named after him; then certainly when
he says that these teachings on tithing are the doctrine and will of
his Father, those teachings would apply to us.
Tithing Revealed Anew
Furthermore, a hundred years ago and a little more, the Lord
revealed the gospel of Jesus Christ to the Prophet Joseph Smith. As
part of that great restoration was the restoration of the principle
of tithing. In a revelation to the Church the Lord said that this
commandment would be an everlasting law unto the priesthood of
the Church. (D. & C. 119:4.) It is, therefore, a law that you and I
must obey if we expect to receive the blessings that God has in
store for those who love him and keep his commandments.
Experience at Interview
I would like to relate a little experience that I had about a year
ago. A young man came into my office to be interviewed to be
ordained a seventy. I asked him if he would like to be a seventy.
His face lighted up with joy; and he said, "Yes, Brother Hunter,
for a long time I have wanted to become a seventy. I have never
been recommended before, but I do hope that I am now worthy.
I do hope that you ordain me a seventy today."
After I got this gush of enthusiasm from him, I asked him a
question rather point-blank. I said, "Would you steal $150.00
from your neighbor?" A look of indignation came over his face.
If I could have read his thoughts, he probably would have been
thinking, "Well, you have your nerve, Brother Hunter, to think
that I would steal."
Finally he looked at me and said, "No, sir."
I wasn't exactly satisfied, and so I said, "Would you steal a
cow from your neighbor?"
He shot back this reply instantly, "I wouldn't steal thirty-five
cents from my neighbor."
I remarked, "This is very, very interesting to me, that you
wouldn't steal thirty-five cents from your neighbor; and yet, you
would rob God."
A questioning look came over his face, and he asked, "What
do you mean? I don't understand you."
Thereupon I turned his recommendation card over and read
these words, "Part tithepayer."
He looked at me rather flushed, and I might say, turned a little
red, twisted around in his chair a little, and finally he said to me,
"Well, I guess it's this way, Brother Hunter: the Lord isn't here
to check up on me. My neighbor is. If I robbed my neighbor,
he would put me in jail."
I replied, "Brother, you are partly right and partly wrong. Cer-
tainly your neighbor would put you in jail if you robbed him. He
ELDER MILTON R. HUNTER
61
should put you in jail, but when you got out of jail, your neighbor
would have no more influence or claim on you. You would have
paid your debt. But God also is checking up on us, and we are
working with him for eternal life. He declares that eternal life
is the greatest gift he has in store for man, and it is reserved for
those that love him and keep his commandments. To receive eternal
life in the presence of God would be worth more than all the money
in the world." And I continued by saying: "Now it is my opin-
ion and feeling that if you or I or any other Latter-day Saint feels
that he must rob somebody, I think probably it would be far better
to rob our neighbor than to rob God."
He replied, "Well, I've never thought of it that way before."
And then I asked, "What are you going to do in the future?"
"I am going to be a full tithepayer," came quickly the positive
and unqualified answer.
I was delighted that he took that attitude because he now under-
stood more about the law of tithing and had reached a determina-
tion to obey it in the future.
Covenant to Obey
We are told by the prophets of God that the earth is the
Lord's and the fulness thereof; that you and I are merely stewards,
merely landlords, so to speak. Our rent is one-tenth of all that
we earn. Yesterday, in a very beautiful way, Brother McConkie
spoke of a covenant with God. Every one of us has entered into
a covenant with God to the effect that we will pay one-tenth of all
that we earn to the Lord. When we entered the waters of baptism
and became members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, we accepted all of the principles of the gospel, including the
principle of tithing.
The Lord has given us the law of tithing in order that he
might test our honesty. When we use any portion of God's one-
tenth, we are robbing him.
The Lord has given us the law of tithing in order that he might
test our love for him. He has declared that if we love him we will
keep his commandments; therefore, to the extent that we pay a
full tithing, to that extent we have given tangible evidence that we
do love the Lord our God.
The Lord has given us the law of tithing to test our obedience.
The purpose is to see if we will be faithful in all things that God
commandeth us.
Furthermore, the Lord has given us the law of tithing to test
our preparedness to enter the kingdom of God, to enter exaltation.
Teachings of Joseph F. Smith
The prophets of God have taught the things I have been men-
tioning here this morning. I would like to quote from the teachings
62 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
of one of the great prophets in our day, the Prophet Joseph F.
Smith. He said in regard to tithing, this:
By this principle (tithing) the loyalty of the people of the Church
shall be put to the test. By this principle it shall be known who is for
the kingdom of God and who is against it. By this principle it shall be
seen whose hearts are set on doing the will of God and keeping his com-
mandments; thereby sanctifying the land of Zion unto God, and who are
opposed to this principle and have cut themselves off from the blessings
of Zion. There is a great deal of importance connected with this principle,
for by it ye shall know whether we are faithful or unfaithful. In this
respect, it is just as essential as faith in God, as repentance of sin, as
baptism for the remission of sin, as the laying on of hands for the gift of
the Holy Ghost. [As you recall, the Savior said that "except a man
have these, he cannot see the kingdom of God."] For if a man keep all the
law save it be one point, and he offend in that, he is a transgressor of
the law, and he is not entitled to the fulness of the blessings of the gospel
of Jesus Christ. But when a man keeps all the law that is revealed, ac-
cording to his strength, his substance, and his ability though what he does
may be little, it is just as acceptable in the sight of God as if he were
able to do a thousand times more. (Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine,
pp. 282-283.)
President Smith also made this statement:
The law of tithing is a test by which the people as individuals shall
be proved. Any man who fails to observe this principle shall be known
as a man who is indifferent to the welfare of Zion, who neglects his duty
as a member of the Church, and who does nothing towards the accomp-
lishment of the temporal advancement of the kingdom of God. He con-
tributes nothing, either, towards spreading the gospel to the nations, and
he neglects to do that which would entitle him to receive the blessings
and ordinances of the gospel. (Ibid., p. 283.)
Could the Lord have established or could he now establish
another way to take care of the economic needs of the Church? I
am positive that he could. He could say, "President George Albert
Smith, in yonder hill or mountain there is a great deal of gold.
Have the brethren of the Church mine that gold. Use the money
to build church houses, to send missionaries out in the mission fields,
to take care of all the other needs of the Church. The Latter-day
Saints have been faithful in the past in paying many contributions,
so from now on they can rest. They don't have to pay any more
money to the Church."
Blessings to Follow
Certainly he could do that if he wanted to, but he won't. He
is too wise a God to do that. He recognizes the great spiritual
blessings which come from paying tithing. They far outweigh
the economic blessings. He recognizes that "where a man's treasure
is, there his heart will be also." He recognizes the fact that if
we contribute much money to help build a church house, we might
come to church to get our money's worth. He recognizes the fact
that if we give donation after donation to the Church for various
ELDER SPENCER W. KIMBALL 63
purposes, our contributions tie us into the Church. As a matter of
fact, we own part of it. We belong there. It develops us spiritual-
ly to pay on welfare, to pay tithes, to pay fast offerings, to pay and
pay into the Church.
Brethren and sisters, it is a blessing, an opportunity in your
lives and in my life to have the privilege of paying into the Church.
It helps us to get rid of the selfishness in our hearts. It makes us
love each other more. It makes us love God more. In fact, it
makes us more godly. In other words, tithing is a spiritual law
which God has given us for the purpose of preparing us to come
back into his presence and receive eternal life. Therefore, his course
is a wise course. Every wise Latter-day Saint will accept it.
Not one of us can afford to be part tithepayers nor non-tithepayers.
We need the blessings of the Lord.
I humbly ask our Father in heaven to let his Spirit rest down
upon you and me and upon every member of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints, whether he be a full tithepayer or not;
may the full tithepayers remain full tithepayers; may the part-
tithepayers accept this principle of the gospel and repent of their
past negligence. By doing so we might all prepare ourselves to
come back into the presence of God and receive exaltation. And
for this I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Deseret Stake Choir and the congregation joined in sing-
ing the hymn, "O Say, What Is Truth?" Elder Richard P. Condie
conducted the singing.
ELDER SPENCER W. KIMBALL
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
My brothers and sisters, I should like to express here my great
love and admiration for President George F. Richards who was
with us in our last conference but has since passed away. Of all
the men I have known in my life, none has risen to greater heights,
in my opinion, than Elder George F. Richards in saintliness, in
vision, in understanding, and in love, humility, and power.
Prayers for Lamanites
I was glad that President Beckstead mentioned in his prayer
the Lamanite program. I thought, as he was praying, "Wouldn't
it be glorious if two hundred thousand Latter-day Saint families
every morn before their breakfast, in their family prayers, were
asking that the work of the Lord among the Lamanites might be
furthered; and if those same two hundred thousand families might
also be on their knees before they retired that night to ask again,
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Second Day
among other things, that the blessings of the Lord might be brought
to this great people?"
The Lord has devised a very comprehensive plan, and I have
a firm conviction that the blueprint that he worked out many millen-
nia ago will be followed, and the structure will be built in accord-
ance therewith.
The Prophet Joseph Smith dedicated the Kirtland Temple in
1836. His prayer, which he stated later was a revelation from
the Lord, covered many matters, and in it he made this statement:
And cause that the remnants of Jacob, who have been cursed and
smitten because of their transgression, be converted from their wild and
savage condition to the fulness of the everlasting gospel. (D. & C.
Our Father began to speak through the mouths of prophets
long centuries ago, outlining in prophetic words the history of those
many centuries which were to follow. I'm sure that he inspired a
little boy, Christopher Columbus, to stand on the quays in Genoa,
Italy, and yearn for the sea. He was filled with the desire to sail
the seas, and he fulfilled a great prophecy made long, long ago, that
this land, chosen above all other lands, should be discovered. And
so when he was mature, opportunity was granted to him to brave
the unknown seas, to find this land which had been cut off from
the rest of the world long centuries, and to open the door, as it
were, to the teaching of these people and bringing them back to
their Heavenly Father.
I have a firm conviction that the Lord led the Pilgrims and the
Puritans across the ocean, perhaps permitted the persecutions that
would bring them here, so that when they came to the American
shores with their righteous blood and their high ideals and stand-
ards, they would form the basis of a nation which would make
possible the restoration of the gospel. I am sure that since there
was not religious liberty, not political liberty here, the Lord per-
mitted these few poorly-armed and ill-clad men at Valley Forge
and elsewhere to defeat a great army with its trained soldiery and
its many mercenaries, a few against the many, but the few had on
their side the Lord God of heaven, that gave them victory. And
there came political liberty and religious liberty with it, all in
preparation for the day when a young boy would come forth and
would seek and make contact with the Lord and open the doors
of heaven again. Following that great manifestation to Joseph Smith
came the opening of Cumorah Hill and the speaking of the dead from
the dust.
Plan Devised by the Lord
109:65.)
Purposes To Be Fulfilled
I am sure that all this was for a well-planned purpose. The
ELDER SPENCER W. KIMBALL 65
Lord knew exactly what he was doing, and though evil forces were
at play, they were all brought to. bow, sO that the purposes of the
Almighty would be fulfilled.
I should like to quote to you a paragraph from Wilford Wood-
ruff, stated by him in 1873:
I am looking for the fulfilment of all the things that the Lord has
spoken.
For long centuries the Lord has said how this chosen people
would fall into transgression and how some centuries after Christ
they would be so deep in sin they would lose the faith, and that
certain ones of them would be destroyed. Now, Brother Woodruff
says he knows that these things will all be fulfilled,
. . . and they will come come to pass as the Lord lives. Zion is bound
to rise and flourish. The Lamanites will blossom as the rose in the moun-
tains. I am willing to say here that although I believe this, when I see
the power of the nation destroying them from the face of the earth,
the fulfilment of that prophecy is perhaps harder for me to believe than
any other revelation of God that I have ever read.
Brother Woodruff lived in the day when the Lamanites were
being destroyed. They were the "Vanishing Americans" at that
time, and they were being persecuted and driven and killed and
reservationed about that time of the nation's history. He continued:
It looks as though there would not be enough left to receive the gos-
pel; but notwithstanding this dark picture, every word that God has ever
said of them will have its fulfilment, and they, by and by, will receive the
gospel. It will be . a day of God's power among them and a nation will be
born in a day. The chiefs will be filled with the power of God and will
receive the gospel, and they will go forth and build the New Jerusalem,
and we shall help them. They are branches of the House of Israel and
when the fulness of the Gentiles has come in and the work ceases among
them, then it will go in power to the seed of Abraham.
Work Commenced
We are given to understand that the work commenced when
the book came forth, for in Ether, fourth chapter, we read:
Therefore, when ye shall receive this record ye may know that the
work of the Father has commenced upon all the face of the land. (Ether
4:17.)
The Prophet Joseph Smith gave us the thought that the Lord
brought us out here from the East to bring the gospel to the Laman-
ites. One of the most important things that can possibly happen
in this Dispensation of the Fulness of Times is to bring to the La-
manites a knowledge of God. He says:
. . . there will be tens of thousands of Latter-day Saints who will
gather in the Rocky Mountains, and there they will open the door for
establishing the gospel among the Lamanites, who will receive the Gospel
and their endowments and the blessings of God.
66 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30
Second Day
Brigham Young seemed to catch the vision of it. He said that
the Lord could not have devised a better plan than to put us where
we are in order to accomplish that very thing of educating and
teaching the Lamanites. Our ancestors came a thousands miles
across the desert, under terrific persecutions and hardships, to lo-
cate where the Gentiles had scattered the Lamanites. They had
pretty well "reservationed" them here in the western states. They
were in our every county, and the Lord brought us out here that
we might teach them the gospel.
Brothers and sisters, that work has continued with some inter-
ruptions through the century. Now the Lord has made another step.
It seems to me he is bringing the Lamanites back to us. They were
sent onto reservations all over the west, and now the largest, the
Navajo Reservation, will not support its people. The Navajos are
being starved out. They are coming back among us into the beet
and cotton fields, on the railroads, and in the mines to find employ-
ment. They are coming back into the stakes of Zion where we have
stake missions and where we have thousands of good Latter-day
Saints who live the gospel, and thousands of devoted stake mission-
aries who will teach them the truth. Here is our great opportunity.
The Lord seems to have planned everything for our sake. If we fail
our opportunity, I am sure the Lord will not easily forgive us.
Lamanite Membership
You will be interested to know that there are some forty thou-
sand Lamanite members of the Church in the world, including the
islands of the sea. There are probably ten thousand Lamanite mem-
bers in North America in the Mexican missions and the Indian mis-
sion. There are 902 Lamanite members in the English-speaking
missions in the Eastern, Northern, Central States, and other North
American missions. And this work has gone forward splendidly
under some of our mission presidents. We have baptized 1823 La-
manites in the last two-and-a-half years in the three missions that
specialize in Lamanite proselyting in North America. We have
baptized 480 Indians down in the little Indian mission, with a token
number of missionaries. About an equal number have been blessed,
children under eight years of age who belong to families of friends
and investigators and members, so that we now have more than
twelve hundred members there in our short period of missionary
work. We have approximately seventeen hundred Indian members
in the stakes of Zion. We have baptized 347 in the sixty-five stakes
which have reported so far, in this period, since the work was in-
augurated.
In the missions in the United States and Canada, we have
baptized 248 Indians in this short period. You will be interested to
know that we are baptizing more Indians for each missionary than
the Church is baptizing in the rest of the world. There were three
ELDER SPENCER W. KIMBALL 67
and three-tenths baptisms for each missionary in the Indian mission
in 1949, compared to about two-thirds that many for the other
missions in North America. We have about fifty baptisms of Indian
youth who have come from the reservation and who are living in
the homes of Latter-day Saints on a daughter-mother and son-
father basis. Here the Indian boy or girl becomes an unofficial
member of the family, and is neither a servant nor a guest, where
foster parents are taking care of them and are giving them education
and training, and they soon come into the Church at their own
request. We have about fifty-one Lamanite missionaries in the mis-
sion field now, and they will be increasing very rapidly, I am sure.
We have a full-blooded Navajo girl who goes into the mission
field Monday morning, the first from that nation. We have a Pima
Indian in the mission field now, and we have a Catawba Indian
coming from the East who goes into the mission home soon, en
route to one of the other missions in the Church. Brother (E. Wes-
ley) Smith told us yesterday there were ten Lamanite missionaries
from Hawaii who were over in the Orient, I believe.
Early Brethren Quoted
I should like to give you a few quotations from some of the
early brethren. Joseph Smith said that this work was extremely es-
sential, and he sent Oliver Cowdery, Peter Whitmer, Parley P.
Pratt, and Ziba Peterson out as early as October, 1830. It wasn't
very long after the plates had come out of the Hill Cumorah. In
section thirty-two of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord Jesus
Christ says of those Lamanite missionaries:
. . . and I, myself, will go with them, and be in their midst; . . .
and nothing shall prevail against them. (D. & C. 32:3.)
And then the Prophet Joseph Smith said,
. . . and there (in the Rocky Mountains) they (the Latter-day Saints)
will open the door for the establishing the gospel among the Lamanites
who will receive the gospel and their endowments and the blessings of
God.
And Brother John Taylor said:
. . . the work among the Lamanites must not be postponed if we
desire to retain the approval of God.
Oliver Cowdery, even in that early day, had found the Navajos
in the far Southwest, and he reported it to the brethren, feeling
that it was a very important thing. Then Wilford Woodruff said
this further, as he went down into the southwest, in New Mexico,
and visited among the Indians there. He said:
In my short communication of the second inst, I promised to give a
fuller account of my visit to the Isletas which I will now endeavor to do.
The Isletas are one of the Pueblo groups down in New Mexico.
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Second Dag
I view my visit among the Nephites one of the most interesting
missions of my life, although short. I say Nephites, because if there are
any Nephites on this continent, we have found them among the Zunis,
the Lagunas, and the Isletas, for they are a different race of people, alto-
gether, from the Lamanites. I class the Navajo, Moquis (Hopis) and
Apaches with the Lamanites, although they are in advance of many Indian
tribes of America. I class the Zunis, Lagunas, and Isletas among the
Nephites.
And then he goes on to say, that as soon as they dismissed this
particular meeting among the Isletas, and were going to leave, one
of the Nephites arose.
. . . full of the spirit of the Lord and said, "Friends, why do you
dismiss us and leave us this way? This is the first time we have heard of
our forefathers and the gospel and the things we have looked for from
the traditions of our fathers. If our wives and children are weary, let them
go home. We want to hear more. We want you to talk all night. Do not
leave us so."
Brother Brigham Young said: "It is our duty to feed and teach
these Indians." Let me quote a few lines from him. He advised
us to "educate them and teach them the gospel" so that many gen-
erations would not pass ere they should become a white and de-
lightsome people.
This is the land they and their fathers have walked over, called
their own. And they have just as good right to call it theirs today as
any children have to call any land their own. They have buried their
fathers and mothers and children here. This is their home, and we have
taken possession and occupy the land where they used to hunt. Now the
game is gone, and they are left to starve. . . . The Lord has given us
the ability to cultivate the ground and reap bountiful harvests. We have
an abundance of food for ourselves and for the stranger. . . . We are
living on their possessions and at their homes.
I should like to quote again from President John Taylor. He
The work among the Lamanites must not be postponed if we desire
to retain the approval of God. Thus far we have been content simply to
baptize them and let them run wild again, but this must continue no
longer; the same devoted effort, the same care in instructing, the same
organization and priesthood must be introduced and maintained in the
House of Lehi as amongst those of Israel gathered from Gentile nations.
As yet God has been doing all, and we comparatively nothing. He has
led many of them to us, and they have been baptized, and now we must
instruct them further and organize them into churches with proper presi-
dencies, attach them to our stakes, organizations, etc., in one word, treat
them exactly in these respects as we would and do treat our white
brethren.
Brigham Young put this into practice, the proclaiming the gos-
pel to the Lamanites, and he sent missionaries up on the Salmon,
over in Carson Valley, over into Moab, down on the Santa Clara,
up around Blackfoot, and elsewhere. He also sent a mission out
said:
History of Lamanite Work
ELDER ALBERT E. BO WEN
69
to the Indian territory. We made five attempts to establish the
work in that area. There were twelve missionaries went in 1855.
The missionaries were withdrawn from almost all of these places
when Johnston's Army came to Utah. And so the work ceased in
many places. Malaria, persecution, and death hampered the work,
and by 1860 the Indian territory mission work had lapsed. There
were few missionaries to send, the Civil War was on, and condi-
tions at hortle were difficult, and and we had just begun to get estab-
lished here in the West. A period of seventeen years elapsed, and
those converts and investigators were lost, of course, with no one
to teach them. In 1877 another group of missionaries went to the
Indian territory. After six months they returned. The malaria was
too much for them. A year later Elder George Teasdale was sent
with some other missionaries, and the work began again, but they
also returned in about six months. The malaria was most severe.
Two years later a fourth attempt was made to establish the
work, and missionaries were sent again. Though the malaria was
severe, they remained, and the mission went on to the present time;
but other changes that were severe came upon the Indian work.
Texas, Kansas, Missouri, and other states were added to the Indian
Territory Mission, and it became the Central States Mission, and
the emphasis was gradually transferred from the Indians to the
non-Indians. When I was in that mission in 1914, no mention was
ever made of Indians, all the work being done among the whites.
About two years ago President Francis Brown of that mission sent
missionaries again to work among the Indians in Oklahoma, and
the work is again going forward.
Our Responsibility
It is time now that we began to give proper emphasis to this
great work of bringing the Lamanites to a knowledge of their God.
It is our responsibility and our opportunity. Now, brothers and
sisters, in the stakes and missions you will have a chance to teach
the Indians. Let your prayers ascend to the Lord in behalf of them
and then do your utmost to bring them to higher standards, and
above all, give to them the gospel of the kingdom and the knowl-
edge of God, as they once had.
May the Lord bless the Lamanite people, and bless us that we
many realize our responsibilities toward them. This I pray in the
name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER ALBERT E. BOWEN
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
One often hears the question: Why a church? I should like
briefly to consider it. I shall hope to suggest to your minds that the
question is tantamount to asking: Why religion?
70 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday. September 30
Second Day
Washington's Farewell Message
It was one hundred fifty-four years ago this very month, his
second term of office as President of the United States drawing to
a close, that George Washington announced to the country his de-
termination to retire, and requested that he not be considered avail-
able for re-election to the office he was about to lay down. He made
it the occasion for a farewell message which partook almost of the
nature of a last testament, bequeathing to his countrymen the fruit-
age of his rich and varied experiences.
As a participant in the long and oftentimes acrimonious disputes
which eventuated in the political severance of the American colonies
from the mother country, as Commander-in-Chief of the untrained,
poorly-disciplined, ill-equipped, scantily-clad, under-provisioned, and
ofttimes unpaid Continental Army, as witness to the bickerings and
jealousies and petty greeds which, following the war, so threatened
the wreckage of the infant nation that he often wondered whether the
winning of the conflict with Britain would prove to be a blessing or a
curse, as president of the convention which fashioned the Constitution
of the United States of America and as it first president, he had seen
human nature at its best and almost its worst. Under stresses and
strains, sacrifice and suffering, he had seen men rise to noble heights
of patriotic devotion. Likewise, he had seen them usurp and abuse
power, quarrel and bicker, resort to petty scheming for advantage,
exhibit mean little greeds, and stoop, under the spur of selfish am-
bition, to ignoble deeds.
Drawing upon this ripe knowledge of human behavior with all
its foibles and inconstancy, he so packed into that testamentary
legacy perennial wisdom that it never grows old, but is valid for all
peoples and all times.
Among the nuggets of pure gold tucked away in that admoni-
tory address are Washington's observations about religion and
morality. Here is what he said:
Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity,
religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man
claim the tribute of patriotism who should labor to subvert these great
pillars of human happiness — these firmest props of the duties of men and
citizens. The mere politician, equally with the pious man, ought to re-
spect and cherish them. A volume could not trace all their connections
with private and public felicity. . . . And let us with caution indulge the
supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever
may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar
structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national
morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle. (Sept. 17, 1796.)
The Christian Church
Without doubt, when Washington spoke about religion, he
had in mind the Christian religion. By and large that is the only
religion Western man knows. When I speak, in what I shall say
ELDER ALBERT E. BO WEN
71
today, about religion or the church, I shall have in mind the Chris-
tian religion and the Christian church, which encompasses the moral
and religious teachings of the Old Testament as well as the new.
The church has had many ups and downs since Washington's
day as well as before. It has had periods of strength as well as
periods of questionings and doubts. Agnostics and atheists have
ever been with it. It has taught that man, the individual as well
as the race, is of very great consequence. As a child of God en-
dowed with divine attributes, he is capable of infinite advance-
ment in the scale of being, even to ultimate perfection. He must
have faith in himself and his high destiny. Thus far, the Christian
is a humanist, and the church is humanistic. But when man loses his
humility and arrogates to himself a self-sufficiency which denies
God or any other power higher than himself, then the church must
part company with the humanistic creed or compromise its prin-
ciples.
Influence Weakened
Under the impact of agnosticism, atheism, and the extreme hu-
manism which denies God and makes man the source of all mean-
ing, the Christian church as a body has compromised its basic doc-
trines to make its teachings more harmonious with the current of
popular opinion. And where has it got itself? It has lost its sav-
ing faith, weakened its influence, and almost forfeited its moral
leadership. In consequence, men are floundering about in confusion,
not knowing what they ought to do, but well-assured that the fair
promises of irreligion and unbelief and human sufficiency have failed
them, and they are casting about for anchorage. That is the sorry
plight of man in this age.
Revival of Faith Needed
Men of distinction in the world of letters, scientists, men of
wide learning in almost every realm of scholarly research are as-
serting with great earnestness that the only thing that can save our
civilization is a revival of religious faith. In one of his notable ad-
dresses, Robert Gordon Sproul, president of the University of Cali-
fornia, said:
There is a great need for some directive force to rally the recuperative
powers of mankind and win the race with catastrophe. Education cannot
provide such a force, important as it is, because it is not the minds, but the
souls of men that must be regenerated if catastrophe is not surely to
come. . . . Our American heritage cannot long endure without a firmly-
grounded religious faith.
Only day before yesterday, General Marshall said that military
force alone cannot defeat the enemies of the United States. It must
be buttressed by the weight of moral force.
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Second Dag
These utterances are but typical of the warnings that are re-
peatedly being sounded by thoughtful people who are concerned
about the state of men and women in this modern world. Thus is
the wisdom of Washington's reminder that religion and morality
are indispensable supports to political prosperity and that morality
cannot be maintained without religion vindicated by the compelling
logic of events in this disordered topsy-turvy world. One of the
most frequently urged indictments against the Soviet system of
government as directed by the polit-bureau is that it seeks to destroy
all religion and forbids freedom of religious practices to its people.
If, then, it can be conceded, as is so vigorously asserted, that
a sound religious faith is essential to the saving of our blighted and
withering civilization, the question demanding concrete and immed-
iate answer is: How is a religious faith equal to this supreme task
to be regenerated? I do not assert or mean to say that the average
run of our people is irreligious or anti-Christian. Christian stand-
ards of morality have too long been bred in their bones for that.
The teachings of Christ still furnish the best standards by which to
measure values that the world knows, and the people of this land,
out of long habit, instinctively turn to them. At least we pay lip
service to them. But clearly that is not enough to furnish the cru-
sading fervor essential to rousing the people of the Christian nations
to that mighty endeavor. It is not a matter for individual, un-
coordinated confession of faith. It requires action, unified action.
That means an organized agency or instrumentality to give the
movement direction and solid purpose. The only such organization
at hand is the church. That is its office. But there are too many
people who profess religion and would probably be insulted if
charged with being irreligious or non-Christian, who at the same
time refuse to unite with their fellows in the effective practice of
religion. They tell us that they do not believe in organizational re-
Who has not heard amiable, good men say: "I have my own
religion and do not need to be bolstered up by church affiliation to
live a good life?" Even if that were so, it may still be that others
need the bolstering up their superior strength would afford, and
after all, they owe some obligation to those who need their help.
But apart from that, if this sinking, trouble-torn world-order is to
be saved through a resurgence of religious fervor, then it is en-
cumbent on every believer to throw in with his might. We hear
much said these days about isolationism and isolationists. The
least excusable form of isolationism and the most reprehensible of
isolationists is that one who holds himself aloof and refuses to lend
Unified Action Required
ligion.
Religious Isolationism
ELDER ALBERT E. BO WEN
73
his strength with fellow-believers to the supreme job of saving civili-
zation and the world.
The gospel taught by Jesus is a gospel of action. It does not
consist in a passive profession of faith. Of himself, Jesus said that
he came to do the Father's will, not to talk about or profess it. He
made a parable about the man who heard his sayings and did them
not, likening him to a foolish man who built his house upon the
sand, and when the rains descended and the floods came and the
winds blew and beat upon that house, it fell because it was built
upon the sand. That man who heard his sayings and did them he
likened to a wise man who built his house upon the rock, and it
withstood the fury of rain and flood and tempest.
A Great Brotherhood
The Christian church was not established by isolationists who
separated themselves from each other or the body of believers. They
were formed into worshipping bodies who collectively fought their
way to victory against dire persecutions, torture, and death. They
constituted themselves a great brotherhood cemented together for
the fulfilment of a purpose in which they believed. Let him who in
placid aloofness luxuriates in the freedom and comfort and security
and ease which Christianity has brought to the nations, contemplate
what his status might have been if there had been no Christian
church.
Organization is but another name for order and stability. Its
opposite is turmoil and confusion and weakness and ultimate disin-
tegration. If no political body in the world has ever been able to
exist without orderly coordinated authoritative organization, how
can it be presumed that religion can carry on its high commission to
resuscitate a sagging world without the church which is the organi-
zational instrumentality through which it carries out its great work?
Here is reason enough for a church.
Effect on Family Life
There is one other vital consideration, namely, the effect on
family life and succeeding generations of the neglect of participa-
tion in organized church practices. A few years ago I recited from
this pulpit the story of a disturbed woman's perplexities. She had
just visited a dear friend of her college days who by then had a
well-grown daughter and a son. She was both embarrassed and
shocked by the behavior of these children. The boy came and went
as he pleased, and no questions asked or answered. The mother's
admonitions and protests against the indelicate indiscretions of the
daughter in her behavior with young men were met with jeers at
the mother's prudery and lack of sophistication. The last night of
her visit, she was awakened by a disturbance in the house. The girl
74 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Dag
had come home from a late party thoroughly intoxicated and was
leading her escort in like condition to her room when they were
intercepted by the aroused parents. A noisy scene ensued before
the boy was finally sent off home and the girl put to bed. So the
embarrassed visitor went home to clear her head and do some think-
ing. She remembered the home environment in which she was
reared.
The religious note was strong in that home. The Bible was
read and believed in. Daily the family on their knees talked to God
who was revered and was a reality. They were church-going peo-
ple and set apart one day a week as a holy day on which to do
reverence to the Author of life. They sang majestic hymns which
carried messages to their expanding souls. They heard the simple,
direct words of the gospels whose grandeur somehow carried over
into their hearts and furnished their ideals for living. These ideals,
through practice, were silently woven into the pattern of their lives,
and they came out with established characters and stable guides
to conduct which made them secure against the waves of laxity
which washed about them with the passage of time. Her home and
family experience were typical of those of the youth of her time,
including the friend she had just visited. That friend, along with
herself, in the days of their girlhood association had spontaneously
as a matter of habit and acceptance observed the conventions and
proprieties.
She explained that she and her friend and their associates had
in their college years given up the simple faith of their youth, had
ceased to give credence to the beliefs which had sustained them,
had given up their Bible reading and their church-going and their
Sabbath observance and their prayers. They could live the good
life without these "artificial props." They didn't need the church.
They said they had their own religion, but really it had shriveled
up to a mere code of ethics now cut loose from its roots and no
longer nourished from the parent stem. Then with an incredible
lack of recognition of the relation of cause and effect, she professed
amazement at the moral bankruptcy of her friend's children. The
truth was that these children by the neglect of their parents had been
cut off from the very character-forming influences upon which her
own character, and her friend's character and the character of their
generation had depended for formation and growth.
Religion a Stabilizer
While the instance I have cited may in some aspects be ex-
treme, it nevertheless illustrates a result naturally to be expected.
The moral foundations established through active participation in
the activities of the church may carry through for one generation,
but scarcely go beyond that. When parents detach themselves
ELDER ALBERT E. BOWEN
75
from active church affiliations and leave their children free to neg-
lect it too, they have no right to be surprised when their children
fall below their own standards. Religion is a powerful stabilizer,
and the church is the medium through which it is made effective.
I have but merely mentioned some of the reasons why there
must be a church if religion is to be a force in the world or wield
any influence or power. Many other cogent reasons will occur to
you.
The church, however, is but a dry and barren mechanism un-
less energized by the burning faith of a vital religion. That is the
spark that gives it life.
It would seem to be the part of wisdom that all professing the
same creed, the rich and the poor, the mighty and the humble, the
laborer and the professional man, the unlearned and the scholar
should rally together and with united strength exert a power in the
land.
Solid Conviction Required
To merit the name, religion must rest on solid conviction. It
must stand for something. It cannot temporize or compromise. The
Christian church rests on the premise that Jesus is the Son of God,
the resurrected Lord, the author of eternal life for man. So long
as it stood unyielding on that base, it was a force in the world.
When the guardians of the faith, in their several denominations,
wavered and watered the doctrines down till the virtue was gone
out of them, they ceased to be the prop and support to morality and
political prosperity which Washington said was indispensable. So
long as that is the case, the world will totter and reel. We seem to
be trying now to rear a government whose proponents and sponsors
cannot even invoke divine blessing upon their deliberations or its
destiny. What chance do you think it has to heal the wounds of
the world?
If religion is a necessary prop to the political government, so
likewise does the religious body, the Church, need for the protec-
tion of its guaranteed freedom a righteously administered civil
government, which depends upon an intelligent and jealously guard-
ed use of the franchise. That is the citizen's protection against abuse
and usurpation.
So far as Latter-day Saints are concerned, I pray that as Presi-
dent Smith admonished at the beginning of this conference, they
may have the wisdom and honesty to put their religion above their
partisan politics and unite together as a solid phalanx to weed out
prostitution of power and debauchery and subversion of the God-
ordained freedom guaranteed by the glorious Constitution of this
land, by voting into office without regard to party affiliation those
who will preserve it unpolluted and uncorrupted, the protector and
guarantor of individual liberty.
76 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30
Second Day
ELDER LEO J. MUIR
Formerly President of the Northern States Mission
Twenty-three hours ago I left Los Angeles to attend this con-
ference. The journey was long and tedious. But, my dear friends,
I testify to you that the little trip I just made from yonder front
seat to this pulpit was by far the most exhausting lap in that journey.
Lest you might think there has been some negligence or in-
difference on the part of the First Presidency in not calling for my
report previous to this time, let me assure you the fault has been
mine and not theirs. I was here at the last conference and attended
all sessions, except the Sunday morning. I thought that of all ses-
sions of the conference that would be the least likely to afford oc-
casion for the report of a mission president.
I am delighted to be here and to look upon this vast and in-
teresting audience, the following of the leadership of modern Israel.
I am not going to burden you with details upon my mission experi-
ence. Suffice it to say that to Sister Muir and myself it was the
most enriching experiene of our lives. Well, indeed, might anyone
covet the privilege of a mission presidency. I am sure my feelings in
this matter reflect the heartfelt verdict of all the men and women
who have been privileged to enjoy such an appointment. The people
in the mission field have a simplicity of faith that to me is ad-
mirable. In the stakes of Zion we argue a good deal about this
principle or that principle, and we indulge in debates and didactics.
Out in the mission field the Saints take for granted the verity, truth-
fulness and substantiality of the principles of the Gospel of the Lord
Jesus Christ. And they represent the acquisition we have made in
the world in our attempt to gather Israel to the fold of Christ. In
their total, especially when we consider their remoteness from the
headquarters of the Church, they are a commendable acquisition
and a substantial corroboration of the affirmation the Church makes
that it represents the power and the authority of God upon the
earth.
Now, I want to say that I feel a sense of pride in standing here
at this pulpit. This is the greatest pulpit in all the world. I sin-
cerely believe that more truth, more of the logic and wisdom of
religion, and more of the warmth, substance and loveliness of cor-
rect instruction have gone forth from this pulpit than from any oth-
er pulpit on earth. One thing that always pleases me is that there
is no effort on the part of those who speak from this pulpit to reach
for something exalted, captivating or fascinating. They just labor
on diligently in the exposition of the truth. My dear friends, that's
what we need, and every time I come here I find myself the bene-
ficiary of a great deal of truth, wholesome truth, ardently expressed
and yet so clearly and simply that the wayfaring man may not
err in it.
ELDER LEO J. MUIR
77
Now I have another thought about this pulpit. Ezekiel tells us,
I think it is in the 36th chapter, speaking for the Lord, that the
Lord will in the latter days pour out his spirit upon Israel and will
cleanse Israel from all her wickedness and her evils, not for her sake
particularly, but for his own name's sake, the name of the Lord,
Jesus Christ. And that he will also take out of Israel as a people,
and I take it also individually, their hearts of stone and will put in
place thereof hearts of flesh. The Lord says — and I think he is
speaking to us — that he will put his law in our inward parts, in our
subconscious mind, that we shall react to his law instinctively, just
as we breathe, just as the organs of respiration, the organs of di-
gestion, the nervous system operate under natural law. And he
further says he will write his law on our hearts so that we shall
obey his law and love his law. Now isn't that a triumphant blessing
promised, somewhere in the future, for the enjoyment of Israel?
That we might love the law of the Lord and instinctively follow it
even as we breathe. Then he says he will call for the corn, sym-
bolic of the vegetation of the earth, and renew it and lay no famine
upon us. Then, finally, toward the end of the chapter we find this
auspicious promise: "I will yet, [the Lord speaking] I will yet for
this," for the doing of these things, cleansing, giving us the heart
of flesh, the heart of love and brotherhood, and renewing to the
earth its Edenic fruitfulness, "I will yet for this be enquired of by
the House of Israel to do it for them."
Now unless my understanding of prophecy is badly distorted,
I feel confident that whenever that prayer, representative of modern
Israel, is sent forth to the Lord that modern Israel might enjoy the
fulfillment of the prophecies of that marvelous chapter in Ezekiel,
such prayer must be uttered here at this pulpit and with the voice
and the authority that have presided here. This is truly the House
of the Lord.
May God bless us, my friends, may he bless the rank and file
of this Church, everywhere, with the firm conviction that we stand
at the very threshold of the richest and most fruitful fulfillments
of prophecy that the world has ever seen, and that we must, our-
selves, do very much toward their fulfillment, is my prayer through
Christ, our Lord, Amen.
President David O. McKay:
The Deseret Stake Choir will now sing "God Is Our Refuge and
Strength."
The closing prayer will be offered by President Glen S. Burt,
Riverside Stake, Salt Lake City, after which this conference will
stand adjourned until 2:00 o'clock this afternoon.
The proceedings for the afternoon session will be broadcast over
KSL of Salt Lake City and by arrangement through KSL over the
stations that have been already named. The proceedings of this
78 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
afternoon's session will be televised over KSL, television station,
channel five.
The choir music for this session of the Conference has been
by the Deseret Stake Choir, Elder Ladd R. Cropper, director and
Elder Roy M. Darley at the organ.
The choir will now sing "God Is Our Refuge."
Singing by the choir "God Is Our Refuge."
President David O. McKay;
In your behalf and in behalf of the listening audience we desire
to express appreciation to the conductor and members of the Deseret
Stake Choir for their great service and the inspiring music of this day.
I am sure that President Alonzo Hinckley, who at one time presided
over this stake and later became a member of the Council of the
Twelve, is pleased with this music.
The benediction will now be offered by President Glen S. Burt.
The closing prayer was offered by President Glen S. Burt of
the Riverside Stake. Conference adjourned until 2 p.m.
SECOND DAY
AFTERNOON MEETING
Conference reconvened Saturday afternoon, September 30,
at 2:00.
President George Albert Smith presided and, at President
Smith's request, President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., First Counselor in
the First Presidency, conducted the services of this meeting.
The Choir music for this meeting was furnished by the Deseret
Stake Choir, Elder Ladd R. Cropper, director. Elder Roy M. Dar-
ley, Assistant Tabernacle organist, was at the organ.
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
This is the fourth session of the One Hundred Twenty-first
Semi-Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. We are convened in the Tabernacle on Temple Square,
Salt Lake City, Utah.
President George Albert Smith, President of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is present and presiding. He has
asked J. Reuben Clark, Jr., speaking, to conduct the services.
These services will be broadcast in the Assembly Hall and in
CHANGES IN CHURCH OFFICERS 79
Barratt Hall (60 North Main) over a loud speaking system and by
television.
The proceedings of this session will be broadcast over station
KSL of Salt Lake City and by arrangement through KSL, over
the stations named in the first session of the Conference.
This session will also be televised over the KSL television sta-
tion, channel five.
The choir singing for this session will be furnished by the
Deseret Stake Choir, Elder Ladd R. Cropper, director, and Elder
Roy M. Darley at the organ.
We will begin the services by the Deseret Stake Choir singing
"For The Strength of The Hills."
The opening prayer will be offered by President N. Russell
Tanner of Weber Stake, Utah.
The Deseret Stake Choir sang the hymn "For The Strength of
The Hills."
President N. Russell Tanner of the Weber Stake offered the
opening prayer.
The Deseret Stake Choir sang "Christian, the Morning Breaks
Sweetly O'er Thee."
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
Elder Joseph Anderson, Clerk of the Conference, will now read
the vital statistical data, the changes in the ward and stake organi-
zations, and the obituaries of the Church.
Elder Joseph Anderson, Clerk of the Conference, read the fol-
lowing report:
CHANGES IN CHURCH OFFICERS, STAKE, WARD
AND BRANCH ORGANIZATIONS SINCE
APRIL CONFERENCE, 1950
Mission Changes and New Presidents Appointed:
David I. Stoddard appointed president of the California Mis-
sion to succeed Oscar W. McConkie.
Near East Mission, formerly the Palestine-Syrian Mission.
Evon W. Huntsman appointed president of the Tongan Mis-
sion to succeed Emile C. Dunn.
Edwin Q. Cannon appointed president of the West German
Mission to succeed Jean Wunderlich.
Sylvester Broadbent appointed to be president of a new mis-
sion to be created in Montana, Wyoming, and parts of North
80 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday. September 30 Second Day
Dakota and South Dakota, to be called the West Central States
Mission.
New Stake Organized:
Richland Stake, organized from the Yakima District of the
Northwestern States Mission.
Stake Presidents Chosen:
Charles Oscar Dunn, president of Boise Stake to succeed Z.
Reed Millar.
Elwood J. Corry, president of Cedar Stake to succeed David
LeRoy Sargent.
June W. Black, president of Deseret Stake to succeed Harold
R. Morris.
Thomas W. Muir, president of Emigration Stake to succeed
George A. Christensen.
Earle W. Allen, president of Hyrum Stake to succeed Edwin
Clawson.
Daniel S. Frost, president of Kanab Stake, to succeed Israel
H. Chamberlain.
Davis Green, president of Minidoka Stake to succeed J. Melvin
Toone.
Wendell B. Christensen, president of Palo Alto Stake to suc-
ceed Henry C. Jorgensen.
Elmo P. Humpherys, president of Reno Stake to succeed E.
Vaughn Abbott.
James V. Thompson, president of Richland Stake.
Marden D. Pearson, president of Sevier Stake to succeed Irvin
L. Warnock.
Jesse M. Smith, president of Snowflake Stake to succeed David
A. Butler.
Milan D. Smith, president of Union Stake to succeed C. Lloyd
Walch.
New Wards Organized:
Smith West Ward, Grant Stake, formed by a division of Smith
Ward.
Canyoncrest Ward, Highland Stake, formed by a division of
Parleys Ward.
Crystal Heights Ward, Highland Stake, formed by a division
of Park Avenue Ward.
Salmon 2nd Ward, Lost River Stake, formed by a division of
Salmon Ward.
Mesa 10th Ward, Maricopa Stake, formed by a division of
Mesa 6th Ward.
El Paso 2nd Ward, Mt. Graham Stake, formed by a division
of El Paso Ward.
CHANGES IN CHURCH OFFICERS 81
Beverly Ward, Orem Stake, formed by a division of Sharon
Ward.
Phoenix 7th Ward, Phoenix Stake, formed by a division of
Phoenix 1st Ward.
Laurelhurst Ward, Portland Stake, formed by a division of
Colonial Heights Ward.
Pasco-Kennewick Ward, Richland Stake, formerly a branch in
Northwestern States Mission.
Richland 1st Ward, Richland Stake, formerly a branch in
Northwestern States Mission.
Richland 2nd Ward, Richland Stake, formerly a branch in
Northwestern States Mission.
Sunnyside Ward, Richland Stake, formerly a branch in North-
western States Mission.
Toppenish Ward, Richland Stake, formerly a branch in North-
western States Mission.
Yakima Ward, Richland Stake, formerly a branch in North-
western States Mission.
Sherman Oaks Ward, San Fernando Stake, formed by a divi-
sion of Van Nuys Ward.
Yosemite Ward, San Joaquin Stake, formed by a division of
Stockton Ward.
Tremonton 3rd Ward, South Bear River Stake, formed by a
division of Tremonton 2nd Ward and all of Evans Branch.
Tooele 7th Ward, Tooele Stake, formed by a division of Tooele
3rd Ward.
Farmington 2nd Ward, Young Stake, formed by a division of
Farmington Ward.
Garden Heights Ward, East Mill Creek Stake, formed by a
division of Rosecrest Ward.
Tucson 2nd and Tucson 3rd Wards, Southern Arizona Stake,
formed by a division of the Tucson Ward.
Gallup Ward, St. Johns Stake, formerly Gallup Branch.
Wards Transferred:
Imperial Ward, East Mill Creek Stake, formerly in the High-
land Stake.
Walla Walla Ward, Richland Stake, formerly in the Union
Stake.
Ward Names Changed:
South Pasadena Ward, Pasadena Stake, formerly El Sereno
Ward.
Seattle First Ward, Seattle Stake, formerly Queen Anne Ward.
Seattle 2nd Ward, Seattle Stake, formerly West Seattle Ward.
Seattle 3rd Ward, Seattle Stake, formerly University Ward.
Seattle 4th Ward, Seattle Stake, formerly South Seattle Ward.
82 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Dag
Tucson 1st Ward, Southern Arizona Stake, formerly Bing-
hampton Ward.
Independent Branches Made Wards:
Lynwood Ward, Long Beach Stake, formerly Lynwood Branch.
Marsing Ward, Nampa Stake, formerly Marsing Branch.
Fort Hall Ward, Pocatello Stake, formerly Fort Hall Branch.
Independent Branches Organized:
Shoshone Branch, Blaine Stake, formerly a dependent branch
of Dietrich Branch.
Sunnyslope Branch, Phoenix Stake, formerly a dependent
branch of Phoenix 3rd Ward.
Hermiston Branch, Richland Stake, formerly a branch in North-
western States Mission.
Fair Oaks Branch, Sarcamento Stake, formed by a division of
Roseville and Carmichael Wards.
Gallup Branch, St. Johns Stake, formerly a branch in the West-
ern States Mission.
Perris Branch, San Bernardino Stake, formerly part of River-
side Ward and California Mission.
Lodi Branch, San Joaquin Stake, formed by a division of Stock-
ton Ward.
Manteca Branch, San Joaquin Stake, formed by a division of
Stockton Ward.
Dove Creek Branch, San Juan Stake, formerly a branch in the
Western States Mission.
Willcox Branch, Southern Arizona Stake.
East Tod Park Branch, Tooele Stake, formed by a division of
Tod Park Branch.
West Tod Park Branch, Tooele Stake, formed by a division
of Tod Park Branch.
Stibnite Branch, Weiser Stake, formerly a dependent branch of
Emmett 2nd Ward.
Weiser River Branch, Weiser Stake, formed by a division of
Weiser Ward.
Independent Branches Discontinued:
Evans Branch, So. Bear River Stake, disorganized, membership
transferred to Tremonton 3rd Ward.
Turnerville Branch, Star Valley Stake, disorganized, member-
ship transferred to Bedford Ward.
Salt Lake City Deaf Mute Branch, attached to Park Stake.
Those Who Have Passed Away:
George F. Richards, President of the Council of the Twelve.
Roscoe W. Eardley, General Welfare Committee.
GENERAL AUTHORITIES
83
Frank Evans, Secretary of Finance to the First Presidency, and
Secretary of the Church Board of Education.
Mabel Young Sanborn, daughter of President Brigham Young.
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
President David O. McKay, of the First Presidency, will now
present the General Authorities, General Officers and General Aux-
iliary Officers of the Church for the sustaining vote of this General
Conference.
PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY
President David O. McKay, Second Counselor in the First
Presidency, presented the General Authorities. General Officers,
and General Auxiliary Officers of the Church, and they were
unanimously sustained by the Conference, as follows:
GENERAL AUTHORITIES OF THE CHURCH
The First Presidency
George Albert Smith, Prophet, Seer and Revelator, and Presi-
dent of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
J. Reuben Clark, Jr., First Counselor in the First Presidency.
David O. McKay, Second Counselor in the First Presidency.
President of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
David O. McKay
Acting President of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
Joseph Fielding Smith
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
Joseph Fielding Smith Spencer W. Kimball
Stephen L Richards Ezra Taft Benson
John A. Widtsoe Mark E. Petersen
Joseph F. Merrill Matthew Cowley
Albert E. Bowen Henry D. Moyle
Harold B. Lee Delbert Leon Stapley
Patriarch to the Church
Eldred G. Smith
The counselors in the First Presidency, the Twelve Apostles,
and the Patriarch to the Church as Prophets, Seers, and Revelators.
84 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday. September 30 Second Dag
Assistants to the Twelve
Marion G. Romney Clifford E. Young
Thomas E. McKay Alma Sonne
Trustee-in-Trust
George Albert Smith, as Trustee-in-Trust for the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The First Council of the Seventy
Levi Edgar Young Oscar A. Kirkham
Antoine R. Ivins Seymour Dilworth Young
Richard L. Evans Milton R. Hunter
Bruce R. McConkie
Presiding Bishopric
LeGrand Richards, Presiding Bishop
Joseph L. Wirthlin, First Counselor
Thorpe B. Isaacson, Second Counselor
GENERAL OFFICERS OF THE CHURCH
Church Historian and Recorder
Joseph Fielding Smith, with A. William Lund as Assistant
Church Board of Education
George Albert Smith Spencer W. Kimball
J. Reuben Clark, Jr. Ezra Taft Benson
David O. McKay Mark E. Petersen
Joseph Fielding Smith Mathew Cowley
Stephen L Richards Henry D. Moyle
John A. Widtsoe Delbert Leon Stapley
Joseph F. Merrill Adam S. Bennion
Albert E. Bowen Franklin L. West
Harold B. Lee
Commissioner of Education
Franklin L. West
Seminary Supervisors
J. Karl Wood
Joy F. Dunyon
GENERAL OFFICERS
85
Auditing and Finance Committee
Orval W. Adams George S. Spencer
Albert E. Bowen Harold H. Bennett
Tabernacle Choir
Lester F. Hewlett, President
J. Spencer Cornwall, Conductor
Richard P. Condie, Assistant Conductor
Organists
Alexander Schreiner Frank W. Asper
Roy M. Darley, Assistant
CHURCH WELFARE COMMITTEE
Advisers
John A. Widtsoe Clifford E. Young
Albert E. Bowen Alma Sonne
Harold B. Lee Antoine R. Ivins
Matthew Cowley Oscar A. Kirkham
Henry D. Moyle LeGrand Richards
Marion G. Romney Joseph L. Wirthlin
Thomas E. McKay Thorpe B. Isaacson
General Presidency of Relief Society
General Committee
Henry D. Moyle, Chairman
Harold B. Lee, Managing Director
Marion G. Romney, Assistant Managing Director
Paul C. Child William T. Lawrence
T. C. Stayner Lorenzo H. Hatch
Mark B. Garff John Longden
Leonard E. Adams Walter Dansie
J. Leonard Love LeRoy A. Wirthlin
GENERAL AUXILIARY OFFICERS OF THE CHURCH
Relief Society
Belle Smith Spafford, President
Marianne Clark Sharp, First Counselor
Velma N. Simonsen, Second Counselor
with all the members of the board as at present constituted
86 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30
Deseret Sunday School Union
Second Day
George R. Hill, General Superintendent
A. Hamer Reiser, First Assistant Superintendent
David Lawrence McKay, Second Assistant Superintendent
with all the members of the board as at present constituted
Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association
Elbert R. Curtis, General Superintendent
A. Walter Stevenson, First Assistant Superintendent
David S. King, Second Assistant Superintendent
with all the members of the board as at present constituted
Young Women's Mutual Improvement Association
Bertha S. Reeder, President
Emily H. Bennett, First Counselor
LaRue C. Longden, Second Counselor
with all the members of the board as at present constituted
Primary Association
Adele Cannon Howells, President
LaVern W. Parmley, First Counselor
Dessie G. Boyle, Second Counselor
with all the members of the board as at present constituted
ELDER THORPE B. ISAACSON
Second Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric
I am very glad I made it this far. At the opening session of
the conference President Smith said this was a beautiful picture, and
it certainly is a magnificent sight, but I would like to have some of
you brethren looking at it now.
My dear brothers and sisters, you of the radio audience, and you
who are following the conference on television, I am grateful for
the privilege of attending this conference in this house which was
dedicated to the service of the Lord. Nevertheless, I always fear
and tremble as I stand here, and I will be very grateful if I might
have an interest in your faith and prayers, because I know I need
the Lord now — I need him always. I confess that I have waited upon
the Lord. I believe I know my limitations. I have prayed, and I
have wanted to be humble, and I believe my soul is bowed.
Tribute to President Richards
I, too, would like to pay tribute at this time to President George
ELDER THORPE B. ISAACSON
87
F. Richards. I am very grateful to my Father in heaven that I had the
privilege of knowing him intimately. He loved this people. He
loved this Church; and the people loved him. These conferences
were a great comfort to his soul, and he, in turn, always gave us
beautiful and wise counsel. He was truly one of God's noblemen.
I am particularly grateful for a blessing that I received at his hands,
and I sincerely pray to my Father in heaven that he will never permit
me to forget that choice blessing.
I had a birthday a few days ago, a month after the passing of
President George F. Richards, and on the day of my birthday I
received a letter signed by President George F. Richards, written
in his own handwriting, that his good wife had kept and mailed
to me the day before my birthday. He had written that letter just
the day before he died. I shall always treasure that letter, and in
it he gives me some advice that I need.
This great tabernacle that we are meeting in now was com-
menced in the year 1863, nearly a hundred years ago. The Lord
inspired the brethren to build this house, and it was first used for a
general conference such as this in the year 1867, and it was dedi-
cated as a house of the Lord.
Conferences Strengthen Spiritually
Spiritually I am strengthened as I attend these great confer-
ences of the Church. The Lord revealed to the Brethren that con-
ferences should be held, both general conference and stake con-
ference, so that we could be spiritually strengthened and instructed
in our duties.
It is very good to be here to worship God, our Eternal Father,
together. We are here for no other purpose. We have no selfish
interests. We come here to thank our Father in heaven for the
blessings that we enjoy as a people. We come here and unite our
faith, and when all of us together can unite our faith humbly, then
the Spirit of the Lord is here in rich abundance. It is good to be
here and pray together, and when we say "Amen" to these prayers,
we have prayed together, and the prayers have been so beautiful and
strengthening. It is good to be here and sing together. It is good
to be here and hear the word of the Lord as we have heard yesterday
and today and that we will hear during the remainder of the con-
ference. It is good to be here and be taught the gospel of Jesus
Christ. It is good to be here and partake of the Spirit of the Lord,
and as is stated in Genesis: "Truly this is God's house."
Missionary Letter
As we come here to be instructed and to draw near to the Lord,
I am reminded of a letter that I received the other day from a nephew
of mine who is on a mission over in Finland. Brother Stephen L
88 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
Richards had just been there and spoken to these missionaries, and
I would like to quote from a paragraph in this missionary's letter.
Last week it was a real privilege to hear Apostle Stephen L Richards
and also to see and feel the example that he is, the spirit which he radi-
ates. I sometimes am afraid these Apostles of God which live in our midst
today may not be appreciated for what they really are. Many people do
not realize that these men are truly Apostles of God in the same sense
of the word that Peter, James, and John were Apostles of God, our Father.
This great Apostle who was inspired of the Lord stood in front of us this
day and told us about the things of our Father in heaven, and I shall never
forget one thing that he said to us: "The things of men are understood
by the spirit of men, and the things of God are understood by the spirit
of God."
Lord Inspires Leaders
I, too, know and bear testimony that every one of these Apostles
is truly an Apostle of God, our Eternal Father. I want to bear testi-
mony in all humility that I know that the Lord inspires his leaders.
Many times I have seen decisions made that for the moment I could
not understand nor could I comprehend, but it was only days, yes,
only hours, until I knew that the decisions that had been made were
truly the decisions inspired of our Father in heaven.
I am grateful for the privilege I have of living in this day and
age when the gospel has been restored. I am grateful for a little
old grandfather who in his youth accepted the gospel in far-off Den-
mark. I am grateful that the Spirit of the Lord came into his bosom
and told him that it was true. I am grateful that he had the courage
and that he listened to that spirit. He had to leave his native land,
his parents, and his brothers and sisters, never again to see them;
but oh, how he loved the Lord, and how the Lord blessed him all
the days of his life.
Mission of Prophet Joseph
I am grateful for the mission of the Prophet Joseph. I am grate-
ful that he read that passage of scripture because he lacked wisdom.
He was confused. He read that passage of scripture that we ought
to read today and practise:
If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all
men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. (James 1:5-6.)
He believed in God, and he went into the Sacred Grove, a natural
place for him to go and kneel down and pray, just back of his
father's home. I don't suppose we can ever imagine how he must
have felt when God and his Son appeared to him. He saw them;
they spoke to him; and as a result of that great event, one of the
great events of the ages, it has been made possible for you and
me to be members of the Church of God, our Eternal Father. I am
grateful for our parents and our grandparents who had that faith,
ELDER THORPE B. ISAACSON 89
who did not have the learning of men, but oh, they had the faith of
God. Their testimony was indeed strong. Yes, if we lack wisdom,
let us ask of God. He has promised us if we would seek after
him, we would truly find him. I know that God hears and answers
prayers. I can confess humbly, publicly, that I know I would not
be able to do my work if the Lord withheld from me his blessings
in response to my petitions and my prayers. God has said: "Pray
always, and I will pour out my blessings upon you." Yes, he has
said,
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat
in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if
I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing,
that there shall not be room enough to receive it. (Malachi 3:10.)
Other promises and other blessings go with all the commandments
of the Lord.
Rededication of Lives
Now as we attend these conferences, oh if we could rededicate
our lives, and put aside those things that matter little. Sometimes I
ponder over the things that I have foolishly placed value on that
mean little or nothing.
I would like to ask you, "When are you the happiest?" You're
the happiest when you are trying your best to serve the Lord with
all your heart, with all your might, and with all your strength. And
I would like to ask you when you're the most unhappy? You're the
most unhappy when you fail to do those things that the Lord has
commanded you to do. Happiness, true happiness, comes from
serving the Lord every day as best you can, trying just a little harder
today than you did yesterday.
It is marvelous to be associated with the Latter-day Saints. We
love you as we come to you in your wards and your stakes. You're
a great inspiration to us. Sometimes we try to encourage you, but,
oh, the comfort you bring to us from your faith and your prayers
and your encouragement to us.
Our Servicemen
Now I would like to say just one word about the servicemen.
I wish you could all have heard Brother McConkie last night at our
bishops' meeting. My heart goes out to this group of boys who have
been called away from their loved ones; who have been called away
from their wives, their farms, their businesses, their schools; many
of them wanted to go on missions. They'll not have that privilege
now, at least temporarily, but, oh, I hope that as a Church, that as
a people, not only we who have sons of our own, but that all will
unite our faith that the Lord will bless these young men. They
didn't bring this on themselves. They go because it is their duty
. GENERAL CONFERENCE
Second Day
to their country. They don't like war; they don't like hatred; and
they don't like killing. But they are called into the service of their
country. Many of them have just been married, some of them only
married a couple of years, some of them only a short time. They
are entitled to live and to love and to rear their families and build
their homes. It would not matter so much if it were some of the
rest of us who have nearly lived our lives; but may our faith and
prayers go out to these young men. Pray for them diligently, for,
as Brother Bowen said this morning, "If this Church could unite
our faith, if we can humble ourselves and petition the Lord regularly
that these boys may be blessed, I'm sure that God will look down
in his tender mercy upon them." May we pray every day of our
lives, pray harder than we have ever prayed before that God in
his mercy will stay the hand of the leaders of nations, that this
conflict may not become a dreadful conflict that could ruin thousands
and millions of innocent young men, leave many widows, and many
children fatherless.
May we write to those young men diligently. May we promise
them that we are praying for them with all the faith and prayer and
testimony that we can muster. It isn't enough that we leave that
just to the parents of these boys. Surely they will write to them
nearly every day of their lives. They'll need you. They are not in
places of worship. They are in an environment that is not good,
and you know it, and I know it; so when we know that, is it asking
too much that we exercise our faith and our prayers in their behalf
that they can come back, that they can yet have the privilege of
living and loving and raising their families as God intended? Oh,
I am sure the Lord must not be pleased with the world conditions
of today.
Many of these young men returned from the service three or
four years ago. They didn't ever expect to be called back to the armed
services again. Some of them signed up as reserve officers, but
they did not expect to be called back into bloody conflict in just
four or five years. Many parents have already received that sad
letter which starts out "We regret to inform you." Oh, may we
pray to God Almighty, that he will spare the lives of our boys,
that they can come back and fulfil their places in the Church as
they have desired to do.
I did receive a ray of hope today when I read that just yesterday
the United Nations commander directed the Lord's prayer. Seldom
has the Lord's prayer been uttered in such solemnity or in such grim
surroundings. Yesterday it was spoken in a battered Korean capital,
in the legislative halls where glass came tinkling down from the
Letters of Encouragement
The Lord's Prayer in Korea
ELDER THORPE B. ISAACSON
91
wrecked dome at intervals, and where the galleries were guarded,
where they kept close watch in all directions, and where the Korean
guards stood outside, draped in grenades. They themselves were
walking bombs. The leader of the Lord's prayer yesterday was
General Douglas MacArthur. He stood behind the speaker's desk
on the speaker's platform, with light showing the gravity of his
lean physique. Before him the congregation at this place of thanks-
giving consisted of brass hats in army uniforms; haggard, unshaven
marines and soldiers; and many weary-looking war correspondents
and other people. The war air was tainted with smoke and death;
smashed and burning buildings stood along the streets; columns of
reverse refugees were now trying to find home. Then Douglas
MacArthur came to that part of his address where he was about
to read the Lord's prayer, and he hesitated for a very long solemn
moment, and then that great man raised his hands and stood up
and asked everybody to quote the Lord's prayer, and he stated, "In
humble and devout manifestation of gratitude to Almighty God for
bringing this decisive victory to our arms, I ask that all present
rise and join me in reciting the Lord's prayer." There was the
rumbling shuffle of many rising to their feet such as you might hear
in a great church. Off came the camouflaged helmets, the canvas
hats, the navy caps, the snappy, blue air-force hats — all were bowed
as they repeated the Lord's prayer. It was truly the act of a Chris-
tian gentleman. Oh, that that same spirit, that same confidence in
God, our Eternal Father, could be in the hearts of all men who are
holding responsible positions!
I bear you my testimony that I know that God lives. I know
that the spirit of the Holy Ghost is understandable. I know that it
is clear. I know that we can hear it if we will only try and listen
to it as it speaks to us. And in closing, I would like to give my favor-
ite little quotation:
Oh, the joy and comfort that comes from feeling safe with a group
like you, having neither to weigh my thoughts nor measure my words,
but pouring them out from my heart, just as I have today, chaff and grain
together, feeling certain that some kind friend here will accept what's
worth keeping and with a breath of kindness, blow the rest away.
God bless you, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Deseret Stake Choir and the congregation sang the hymn,
"How Firm A Foundation," Elder J. Spencer Cornwall conducting.
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
Elder Henry D. Moyle, of the Council of the Twelve, will now
speak to us. Elder Delbert Leon Stapley, newly sustained mem-
ber of the Council of the Twelve, will follow Elder Moyle.
92 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
ELDER HENRY D. MOYLE
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
My brethren and sisters, I am indeed grateful for this oppor-
tunity to bear my testimony to you and to those who listen in. I am
grateful to be counted a member of the great Church and kingdom
of God here upon earth. And I am especially grateful that my life
was touched as closely and as intimately as it was by the life of
our departed President, George F. Richards. I want to join with
my other brethren today in paying respect to his memory. He will
always stand in my memory as a man of God whose testimony of
the divinity of the work in which we are engaged will ever burn
in my heart. It has increased my testimony and the intensity thereof
because I know that what he knew and what he testified to was
true. I am also very grateful for the close association I have had
both in the Church and out with our departed brother, Frank Evans.
I had the privilege of practising law in the same courts and in the
same counties as did he. And whether it was in his profession or
in his Church activities, he exemplified the highest virtues that we
find in our fellow men.
Army of Righteousness
As I have sat here during this conference and looked into your
faces, I have been conscious of the fact that we represent but a
small part of this great body of men and women whose lives are
dedicated to the work incident to the establishing of the kingdom of
God here on earth. If we had a building which would hold twenty
times as many people as are here today, we would hardly have as
many people as we meet every three months in our quarterly con-
ferences throughout the Church. Just think of it: A great army of
righteousness contending against evil! What a power and what a
force we are in the world. It was in 1899 that President Heber J.
Grant spoke these words:
The Latter-day Saints are indeed, as the Prophet loseph Smith said
they would be, a mighty people in the midst of the Rocky Mountains,
and we are simply in our infancy. We are beginning to grow and be-
come a mighty people, but we are nothing to what we will be. There is
no question in my mind but what the Lord is going to multiply the Latter-
day Saints and bless them more abundantly in the future than he has
ever done in the past, provided of course that we are humble and diligent,
provided we seek for the advancement of God's kingdom and do not do
our own mind and will. (Conference Report, April 1899, p. 28.)
What Is Important?
I'd like to say a few words this afternoon about that Latter
subject. There are so many people on the earth today who desire
to do their own will rather than the will of the Father. And when-
ever I think of these people, I wonder what there is that we can do
ELDER HENRY D. MOYLE
93
in our ministry to touch their lives, cause them to realize the blessings
that are incident to obedience to the laws of God. What is there in
life, after all, that is so important that we cannot and should not
set it aside to do our full duty to our maker? The Savior said to
his disciples of old:
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any
man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. (I John 2:15.)
Is there anything the world has to offer us today that is as
precious as the truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ? The gospel
brings comfort and joy into our lives, gives us a sense of security
which the world cannot offer to us. Some people today, and today
is a day of prosperity, become so attached to their wealth that they
become sufficient to themselves. They cease to be dependent upon
God. They sense no necessity for any direction from him, and
they go their own way. Just as certainly as they do, they gradual-
ly lead themselves on toward destruction. When the Lord blesses
us with wealth and with prosperity, we have a great mission to
perform. We can utilize that which the Lord has given us so beauti-
fully to build up his kingdom, to help one another, and to accomplish
good, and to be the more dependent upon our Father in heaven
rather than less. As a matter of fact, prosperity, economically speak-
ing, is not the only force in the world that draws us away from the
things of God and builds us up in our own estimation — leads us to
criticize the prophets of God here upon the earth, thinking that our
judgment and our wisdom are superior to theirs. It seems that
when men gain power on this earth, whether it be political or other-
wise, they build up within themselves an egotism which destroys
that simple faith in God which is so essential for men who are
charged with important responsibilities in public life and elsewhere
to possess.
Brother Bowen read to us this morning from the farewell address
of President George Washington. Washington realized that religion
and morality are the pillars which uphold the Constitution of the
United States, and without which the Constitution would fall. Wash-
ington also realized and exemplified in his life the necessity for religion
and morality in the lives of those charged with the responsibility of
maintaining our Constitution, and without which men will be led
away from the truth. Men will be led to follow the course which
will ultimately destroy the Constitution rather than uphold it, against
their very oaths of office, if they once throw off the cloak of morality
and of religion. No one can fail to uphold the Constitution and be a
good citizen, much less a worthy public officer. One who disregards
the Constitution is not worthy of our patronage, politically or other-
wise.
Religion, Morality Necessary
94 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
It grieved me very much this year to hear a man running for
public office decry the fact that another man in the opposite political
camp had religion with him, as though that totally disqualified him
for public office. When men, in the exercise of the power which
they hold by virtue of the offices in the government to which they
are elected, begin to discredit religion, they cease to become fit to
hold public office. And I hope and pray that we as a people shall
be led to exercise the rights which are ours in this great govern-
ment of ours to vote for those men who have some religious con-
ception and who seek to ordain their lives in accordance with the
principles of truth and of right; men who respect, uphold, obey,
honor, and sustain the Constitution of the United States.
Organizations Spring Up
We have in our midst social organizations. They seem to be
springing up every day in one shape or another; and because there
is some power, some distinction, some prerogative that goes with
those who become members and the heads of these organizations
(whether they be purely social or otherwise), many seem to think
that's more important in their lives than to magnify the callings
which are theirs in the priesthood. We have heard something said
this morning about learning, and the same thing holds true for
that. As we become absorbed with the wisdom and the learning
and the philosophy of men, unless we have a humility and a faith
about us, we shall be led astray just as certainly as wealth or power
might accomplish the same purpose. There is a very slight margin
between good and bad in our lives. Sometimes when I see my
friends erring a little, I wonder why it is they can't remove that
margin and be as strong and faithful in keeping the commandments
of the Lord as their neighbor.
I want to say that my heart goes out to you brethren and sisters
here today and to those in the wards and stakes of the Church who
are so faithful to the callings which are yours, and who seek so
earnestly to magnify the priesthood which is yours. I am sure that
history in no age of the world could record any greater faithfulness
than we find today in the lives of our bishops, our stake presidents,
and those who labor under them in the stakes and wards of this
Church. When I look into the faces of these brethren who have
returned from their missions as mission presidents, I have a sense of
reverence for their integrity, their loyalty, their faithfulness, their
courage. These men have been willing to give up their business and
their professions, leave their families and homes, and go out into
the world, and remain just as long as their call extends, not worrying
about what happens in the future. There is no wealth, there is no
political position, there is no power or social distinction which could
come to these men that could tempt them in the least.
ELDER HENRY D. MOYLE
95
Instil Faith, Devotion
And so it is our purpose in the Church to go out among the
people in the wards and stakes and see whether we can instill in their
hearts the kind of faith and devotion which we find in these great
mission presidents of ours. It is one of the joys of my life to be
able, to go into a mission and become intimately acquainted and as-
sociated with these men as they direct the efforts of the sons and
daughters of Israel in the mission field. They give to us an example
which we, that is, most of us, endeavor to reflect in our own lives. I
am sure that as we reflect this into the lives of those over whom we
preside, this great Church and kingdom of God on earth will con-
tinue to grow and develop even as President Grant said it would in
1899. I am sure that prophecy is yet unfulfilled. We are still in
our infancy, and we still have all these worldly forces and powers
to combat and to overcome.
We have a few simple remedies which have been given to us
of the Lord by which to accomplish his purpose; I don't know of
any remedy more effective than ward teaching. If the bishops and
the stake presidents would see to it that this work was entered into
in the true spirit of the priesthood, the spirit of this work as the Lord
intended it, we'd be able to touch the lives of these people. As a
matter of fact, we'd even be able to live close to those who hold
public office if our ward teachers visited them once a month and
called their attention to the duties and responsibilities they owe to
the people who elected them to that office.
Righteousness in Office
I would like to say one more word about public office. There
seems to be a tendency among us in this state, and I presume even
more so in others, to think that when we act as mayor of a city or
in a city council, we are not required to exercise that same degree
of righteousness that we would in our own individual lives. I have
particularly in mind today a case where a mayor and a city council
thought that it was perfectly proper for them to violate the laws
of the state of Utah and to carry on in their city parimutuel betting,
gambling in one of its worst forms, in connection with horse racing
held there during one of their city celebrations. They seemed to
think, when their acts were challenged, that because they held
public office and the city treasury received the income from those
vices they were completely justified. Let us stop for a moment and
see where such reasoning would ultimately lead us. If every city
in Utah did that same thing, then the mayors and the city councils
would nullify the laws of the state legislature. They would take
unto themselves powers that do not belong to them. They would
abrogate the law by their own illegal and immoral practices. But,
say the people of this one town, they don't all do it, and we're the
ones that got this idea up and we ought to be able to continue to
96 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
profit by it. I asked them one simple question. Who is it that
comes to your city to attend these races? Well, they come from
all over the state. Now isn't that the answer? Has any mayor,
has any city council the right to carry on illegally, gambling in the
city under the auspices of the police power of the city and invite
everybody else from the state in, so that city might profit by preying
upon the weaknesses of others, inviting as it were the public to come
there and not only exhibit their weaknesses but also lose their
money. It cannot be any more objectionable for the individual to
carry on gambling within the city than it would be for the city
itself. It seems to me, as a matter of fact, that those who have
taken a solemn oath to uphold and sustain the laws and the Con-
stitution of the land should be the last to violate them no matter
in whose name they might do it.
Exercise Franchise Intelligently
I hope and pray that this coming election will indicate to the
world the steadfastness of the Latter-day Saints in their determina-
tion to move forward as an army of righteousness, to fight evil in
all its forms wherever it is met by putting into office men and women
who will stand for our highest ideals, morally and religiously. We
should be discerning when we seek to exercise any of the rights
that are ours. We should see that those rights are exercised in-
telligently, that we know whom we are voting for, and what they
stand for when we vote for them. It is our privilege, yes, our duty,
to know the position legislators will take on all matters of interest
to us. Will those who seek our patronage at the ballot box, if
elected to the legislature of this state, vote for sale of liquor by the
drink? Will they vote for horse racing with parimutuel betting,
gambling on the side? Will they otherwise let down the bars of
morality and permit men to come into our communities and prey
upon the weaknesses of the flesh. No man ought to be very proud
of his accomplishments if those accomplishments consist of capitaliz-
ing upon the human weaknesses and frailties of others. Generally
speaking, it is the young people, the boys and girls, who are natural-
ly inclined to be a little reckless. They get in the groove, as it were,
in the habit of gambling, by learning that most vicous habit of try-
ing to get something for nothing. It is prevalent today in the individual
lives of our people and in all of our government units to give the
people as much as possible for nothing and to see how little the
people shall ultimately be required to work for what they get. I hope
and pray that the day will come when every Latter-day Saint will
stand for the enthroning of labor and industry and thrift. God bless
us to be wise, to be discreet and discriminating and discerning, and
to utilize every force and every asset that we have to see to it that
our governments are conducted by men who uphold the Constitution
unconditionally, who believe in God, who lend obedience to his
ELDER DELBERT LEON STAPLEY 97
commandments, I pray humbly in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
Elder Delbert Leon Stapley, newly sustained member of the
Council of the Twelve, will be our next speaker and he will be
followed by President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., of the First Presidency.
Congratulations Brother Stapley, upon the great honor and
high responsibility that have come to you.
ELDER DELBERT LEON STAPLEY
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
Brothers and sisters, I feel more keenly than ever that what
President Clark has just said is true. I am grateful I had the stop-
over privilege on the way up to the pulpit, otherwise I am fearful
I would not have made the grade. I stand before you in all humility.
I am very humble about this call, and I know I require the blessings
of the Lord if I fulfil such a high responsibility. I know, too, that
I require your love and confidence, your faith and prayers, for it
is my desire since receiving this appointment, with the help of the
Lord, to give it the best that I am capable of giving.
Love for Brethren
I would like to tell you just a little about the call because it
is a testimony, at least to me. But first I would like to say that I
love these brethren, the General Authorities. I know them all,
and I have had the privilege as a counselor in a stake presidency
and as president of a stake to work with them. I appreciate their
high spiritual leadership, their fine counsel and advice. I have been
coming to general conferences for a long time, and it has been my
privilege to raise my hand to sustain these brethren, and I have
always tried to do just that. Most of my life I have been actively
engaged in the Church. I love the Church; I love to work in the
Church. I delight in working with people. I am sure this calling
gives me that opportunity.
Call to the Council
Thursday, having some stake business to transact just following
the noon hour, but understanding the General Authorities were in
session, I thought I had time to go down the street to visit a friend
of mine before they returned to their offices. As I got out of the
elevator in the Hotel Utah, whom should the Lord place in my path
but President George Albert Smith. There is no one I would rather
see, for I have known and loved him for a long time. As a boy I
remember his coming into my father's home representing the General
98 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
Authorities as a stake conference visitor. When I went on my
mission to the Southern States, President Smith set me apart for
that mission. When my wife and I were married in the Salt Lake
Temple, President Smith officiated. When he was General Super-
intendent of the Mutual Improvement Association, I was super-
intendent of the Maricopa Stake Mutual Improvement Association.
During the dedication of the Arizona Temple at Mesa, President
Smith and his lovely wife lived with us for a period of two weeks.
He has been in our home, and I have seen him many times since.
To us he is a very dear person.
And so here he was, blocking my way. He said, "President
Stapley, you are just the man I am looking for." There in the lobby
of Hotel Utah he told me that it was the wish of the Brethren that
I come on the Council. Well, I saw him to the door, and I am sure
I must have looked like a ghost because people were staring at me
as I walked back into the hotel, and I thought, surely everyone
knows. I went up to the room and called my wife from an adjoining
room. I just couldn't speak, I was so overcome with emotion. She
tried for a long time to find out what was wrong. She thought surely
something serious had happened to me. Well, to some people, per-
haps, it had. But when I finally composed myself and told her about
the interview with President Smith, the only consideration I received
from her was full encouragement to accept the assignment.
Appreciation of Wife
I deeply appreciate my good wife for the position she took, and
I know that in this work if it were not for good wives, the men
could not succeed in such high callings. I have learned to rely com-
pletely upon these Presiding Brethren, and I know when I sustain
them, as being accepted of the Lord, I too am accepted of the Lord
and our Heavenly Father.
Brothers and sisters, that is true of all of us. When we receive
and follow those whom the Lord has chosen, we are accepted of
the Lord and our Heavenly Father.
Blessing Fulfilled
Now just one other thing. As I was passing through Salt Lake
City on my way to the Southern States Mission, I received a patri-
archal blessing from Hyrum G. Smith, the father of our present
Patriarch to the Church. I haven't read that blessing for some little
time, but after this call came, two things in that blessing stood out
in my mind that impressed me very greatly. One was that I would be
called into positions of responsibility and trust. And this, in a
measure, I have enjoyed along the way, but the crowning achieve-
ment is in this appointment to the apostleship. And the other was that
I would travel much for the gospel's sake. Well, I didn't know when
and how in the work I was doing I would be able to realize this
PRESIDENT J. REUBEN CLARK, JR.
99
blessing. I never expected to be called into this position, but it
does open up the way whereby this blessing will be realized. And
so I'm grateful to the faithful patriarchs of the Church who enjoy
the spirit of their calling, and for the ability they have to lay out
before us our pattern of life, and I know if we keep in the way
of God's commandments, we will realize that pattern of life.
I have a testimony of this gospel. It is a great Church, and I
enjoy working in it, and I hope, brothers and sisters, that I may
get acquainted with you in this responsibility and gain your love
and respect and confidence. I ask for your faith and prayers that
I may serve you well, and I do it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
You have just listened to Elder Delbert Leon Stapley delivering
his maiden talk as a newly sustained member of the Council of the
Twelve of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and, as
you brothers and sisters know, he comes into the Council with the
reputation of a long life of activity and usefulness and with our full
faith and confidence.
PRESIDENT J. REUBEN CLARK, JR.
First Counselor in the First Presidency
I feel very humble, brothers and sisters, standing before you
today, and it is my dearest hope that the spirit which has thus far
been present in this conference will continue with us while I speak.
And to that end may I humbly ask for faith and your prayers, that
I may be led to say something that will be helpful to you and to all
who are listening in.
I might begin by adding my tribute to that great soul who is
not with us today, who was here last time, President George F.
Richards. I have never known a man of finer spirit, greater integrity,
more devotion, more loyalty than President George F. Richards
possessed or exercised in his life.
Brother Frank Evans also was a splendid character, a man of
great ability, a man whose place it will be hard to fill.
We are met here today as members of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints — and I am impressed with that name,
The Church of Jesus Christ. I would like to say a few words today
based on the necessity of our remembering that name and of our
yielding loyalty and obedience thereto.
Sermon on Mount of Olives
Out on the Mount of Olives, the day before the crucifixion, the
Lord preached a great sermon to his Apostles, in which he spoke of
the times that were to come. The Prophet Joseph has given us a
100 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Day
revised translation of that great speech. In that speech he spoke
of the times when the anti-Christ would come. He also spoke of
the destruction of Jerusalem and what should precede that event,
apparently the destruction which came under Titus. You may have
to read the discourse with care to determine when the Lord was
speaking of the one and then of the other, but the revised trans-
lation will help you in your study.
At that time, the Apostles seemingly felt, and they felt there-
after, that the second coming of the Savior was near at hand. That
was nearly two thousand years ago. In those early days of the
Church, shortly after the Apostles began their work, there began to
be "fallings away" from those who had joined the Church. There
were a number of things that led to that: perhaps not a full under-
standing of the gospel, their association and proximity, their elbow
rubbing with pagan religions, and other things. But in that time,
Peter warned them of what he called "damnable heresies," and the
Apostle Paul, in his epistles to Timothy and to Titus, spoke more
specifically of the wickedness and the transgressions which were
among the people, and warned Timothy and Titus to warn the people.
In our own modern revelation, the Prophet Nephi has spoken
of these days when men would set up their own reason and their
own learning against the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and he
warned us to beware of such doctrines.
Heresies Now Present
I want to refer briefly to two or three of the old heresies that
are now present amongst us. You will hear among our intellectuals
not infrequently that the God of the Old Testament is different from
the God of the New Testament; that the God of the Old Testament
has evolved into the God of the New — rather a rapid evolution, if
it were true. That doctrine had its base in what we know as
Marcionism, which appeared very early in the church. The doc-
trines of Marcion seem to have been founded upon the hatred which
he bore toward the Jews and his determination to try to wipe out
belief in all that God had done with the Jews, and to destroy the
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. When that doctrine is re-
duced down, it means this: that God is what man conceives him to
be; that man creates his God, instead of God creating man. No
greater falsehood can be promulgated than that.
Arianism
Another heresy which appeared in the early days was known
as Arianism and that was called Sabellianism, which identified as
one being, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. This man
Arius, apparently a resident of Alexandria and a member of the
Egyptian church, in order to get away from that concept, developed
the idea, the doctrine, that Jesus was merely a mortal man, a man of
PRESIDENT ]. REUBEN CLARK, JR.
101
exceptional power, wisdom, and with a great code of ethics. That
was in substance the contention. Marcionism destroyed God and
Arianism destroyed the Christ. These two false doctrines shook the
early Christian church. That doctrine of Arianism is with us today.
As a matter of fact, it would seem that the Protestant churches them-
selves are largely tinctured with it. They no longer, apparently,
preach the simple doctrine that Jesus Christ is the Son of the Living
God, but on the other hand they gloss that over and talk about his
greatness, which, of course, he had. I want us to be warned against
the appearance of these doctrines, because they are grievous sins.
Paganistic Immorality
The third thing I want to mention is paganistic immorailty.
Among some ancient peoples it had advanced, immorality had, to
such a stage of depravity that they actually set up in the worship of
some of the pagan deities, religious prostitutes, who, as a matter
of religion, offered themselves in the temple precincts to those who
were devotees of that religion.
The same elements that had to do with that doctrine are at
work amongst us. There is an effort made in some quarters to
destroy all idea of the sanctity of chastity. In some quarters it is taught
that the urge of sex is like the urge of hunger and thirst and should
be equally satisfied. That doctrine is from the devil and will lead
to destruction for any man, any woman, any people that espouse it
and practise it.
Now, coming back to the Savior, he said: "For what is a man
profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matthew
16:26.)
Evidence About the Savior
The evidence about the Savior and his identity has been ac-
cumulating over the years, both by experience from him, himself,
and by the testimonies of those who have been privileged to receive a
testimony and a knowledge that he lives. We will note some great
testimonies.
On several occasions the Savior himself declared to those who
were about him that he was the light of the world, the light that
shineth in the darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not. He
made this statement to the multitude who remained after he had
forgiven and dismissed the woman who was taken in adultery. He
made the same statement to those who were in attendance when
he healed the man blind from his birth at the pool of Siloam. He has
made it in modern times, in our modern revelations, over and over
again, where he has said, changing it a little bit: "I am the life and
the light of the world." (D. & C. 12:9.) When he was in the
temple shortly before the crucifixion, when he was speaking to the
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Second Dag
Father, he said his soul was troubled; should he say save me from
this hour; yet, he added, for the very purpose of enduring this hour
he had come. He asked the Father to glorify his name, and the
Father said: "I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again."
(John 12:28.) Some of the people thought it thundered; others
thought an angel spoke. Jesus understood.
There has always been to me a great lesson in that incident.
We do not always understand the Savior. We do not always
understand the messages from heaven. We are not in tune. When
the Savior was introduced upon this continent, the Father spoke
from heaven. The people heard the noise but did not understand.
He spoke again, but they did not understand. Finally, the third
time, they heard and knew what he said: "Behold my Beloved Son."
When Jesus was before the Sanhedrin on the night before the
crucifixion, Annas and Caiaphas were there, and the rest of them.
Finally, they said to the Savior, "Art thou the Christ, the Son of
the Blessed?" And he replied to them, "I am." (See Mark 14:61-62.)
You remember when he was met by Martha; you remember
that colloquy at the time of the death of Lazarus. Just before Lazarus
was raised, the Savior said to Martha, in the course of their con-
versation and near its end, "I am the resurrection, and the life: he
that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
"And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die."
(John 11:25-26.)
I want to read you John's testimony found at the beginning of
the gospel:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and
the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by him; and without him was not anything
made that was made.
In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it
not. . . .
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld
his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace
I can only refer to the great vision of Stephen and to his
testimony as he died. After they had gnashed at him with their
teeth and beaten him with stones, he cried out that he saw the Son
sitting on the right hand of the Father. And then, as the scriptures
say, before "he fell asleep" from his beating, he implored our Heav-
enly Father to forgive them.
Then I refer to the First Vision and its testimony when the
Lack of Understanding
(III Nephi 11:7.)
and truth. (Ibid., 1:1-5, 14.)
Visions Given
PRESIDENT ]. REUBEN CLARK, JR. 103
Father and the Son came to the Prophet Joseph in the most glorious
vision ever recorded in history — two beings, the one introducing the
other, and the other giving the instructions. I am always lifted up
by reading what is recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants of the
time when Joseph and Sidney had their vision and another testi-
mony:
The Lord touched the eyes of our understandings [they record], and
they were opened, and the glory of the Lord shone round about.
And we beheld the glory of the Son, on the right hand of the Father,
and received of his fulness;
And saw the holy angels, and them who are sanctified before his
throne, worshiping God, and the Lamb who worship him forever and ever.
And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of
him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he
lives! For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the
voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father —
That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were
created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto
God. (D.6C 76:19-24.)
Testimony
Out on the Mount of Olives on the night before the crucifixion,
just before he went into the garden, the Christ said: "And this is
life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus
Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3.)
My brothers and sisters, this is the testimony which we have.
This is the testimony that we must retain. I bear you my testimony,
born of the spirit, that Jesus is the Christ; that as Peter said: "There
is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we
must be saved"; (Acts 4:12) that he is the Only Begotten of the
Father; that salvation comes through him and only through him;
and I bear you my testimony that we have the restored gospel, that
Joseph Smith was a prophet, and that all those who have followed
him as Presidents of the Church are prophets, seers, and revelators.
I bear you this testimony in the hope that it may strengthen others
as well as strengthen my own, and I pray that God's choicest bless-
ings be with you, and I do it in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ.
Amen.
President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:
The Deseret Stake Choir will now sing "Freedom and Brotherly
Love," after which the closing prayer will be offered by President
Frederick Charles Horlacher, Nevada Stake, and this Conference
will stand adjourned until 7 o'clock, when, in accordance with the
custom of the Church, the General Meeting of the Priesthood of the
Church will be held in this building. Only those holding the Priest-
hood are invited to be present. Persons not holding the Priesthood
will kindly refrain from attempting to enter the building. That ses-
104 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday. October 1 Third Day
sion will not be broadcast. The Assembly Hall will be opened for
television with loud speakers, and likewise Barratt Hall.
The session tomorrow morning at 10:00 o'clock will be broad-
cast over KSL at Salt Lake City, and by arrangement through KSL
over the stations named in the first session of the Conference. That
session will also be televised over the KSL television station, channel
five.
The Church of the Air broadcast, on which Elder John A.
Widtsoe, of the Council of the Twelve, will be the speaker, will be-
gin at 8:30 a.m. Those desiring to attend this broadcast must be in
their seats by 8:20 a.m.
The Tabernacle Choir broadcast comes from 9:00 o'clock to
9:30 tomorrow morning, immediately following the Church of the
Air. As there is only a thirty second break between these two broad-
casts, the doors will not be opened after they are closed for the
Church of the Air broadcast, until after the Tabernacle Choir Broad-
cast is over, at 9:30.
The regular session of the Conference will begin at 10:00 a.m.
The choir music for today has been by the Deseret Stake Choir
with Elder Ladd R. Cropper conducting and Elder Roy M. Darley
at the organ.
We would like to repeat at this time the words of commendation
and congratulation which were extended to this fine choir by Presi-
dent McKay at the close of the morning session.
At the conclusion of this meeting the General Sessions of the
Conference will be adjourned until 10:00 o'clock tomorrow morning.
Singing by the choir "Freedom and Brotherly Love."
The benediction was offered by President Frederick Charles Hor-
lacher of Nevada Stake.
Conference adjourned until Sunday morning, October 1st at
10:00 o'clock.
THIRD DAY
MORNING MEETING
Sunday, October 1.
The fifth session of the Conference convened at 10:00 a.m.,
Preliminary to the commencement of the regular Conference
session the Tabernacle Choir and Organ Broadcast was presented
through the courtesy and facilities of the Columbia Broadcasting
System's coast-to-coast network throughout the United States.
The great Tabernacle was crowded to capacity long before
the time to commence the broadcast, as were also the Assembly
Hall to the south of the Tabernacle and Barratt Hall (60 North
CHOIR AND ORGAN BROADCAST 105
Main Street), with people who had come to hear the broadcast and
to attend the Conference meeting. In addition, many people who
could not find accommodation in any of these buildings assembled
on the grounds and listened by means of loud speaking equipment
that had been installed. The services were broadcast in the As-
sembly Hall and Barratt Hall over a loud speaking system and by
television.
CHOIR AND ORGAN BROADCAST
The following broadcast, which was presented in the Tabernacle
from 9:00 to 9:30 a.m., through the courtesy and facilities of the
Columbia Broadcasting System's network, was written and an-
nounced by Richard L. Evans and originated with Station KSL, Salt
Lake City.
(Organ played "As the Dew," and on signal the organ and
choir broke into "Gently Raise," singing words to end of second
line, and humming to end of verse for announcer's background. )
Announcer: Once more we welcome you within these walls
with music and the spoken word from the Crossroads of the West.
The Columbia Broadcasting System and its affiliated stations
bring you at this hour another presentation from Temple Square in
Salt Lake City, with J. Spencer Cornwall conducting the Tabernacle
Choir, Alexander Schreiner, Tabernacle organist, and the spoken
word by Richard Evans.
We open with a hymn by Parley P. Pratt sung in a setting by
J. Spencer Cornwall: "The morning breaks, the shadows flee; Lo!
Zion's standard is unfurled. The dawning of a brighter day, majestic
rises on the world."
(Choir sang: "The Morning Breaks" — Cornwall)
Announcer: With music from the "Messiah" we hear next a
sacred song written around a glorious text taken from Isaiah: "How
beautiful are the feet of Him that bringeth good tidings, that pub-
lisheth peace . . . that publisheth salvation, that saith unto Zion
Thy God reigneth."
(Choir sang: "How Beautiful are the Feet" — Handel)
Announcer: With Alexander Schreiner at the organ we turn an
urgent utterance of time's passing and of endless undisclosed events
as symbolized by Louis Vierne in an impelling impressionistic piece:
"Westminister Chimes."
(Organist selection: "Westminister Chimes" — Vierne)
Announcer: A sacred song by Tschesnokoff on the heralding
of the message to all men is sung now by the choir: "Their voice
is gone out into all the earth and their words unto the very ends
of the world."
(Choir sang: "Their Voice is Gone Out" — Tschesnokoff)
106 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October 1 Third Day
THE SPOKEN WORD
Sometimes we become impatient with the present. We see its
evils, its uncertainties, its imperfections, and eagerly we wish for the
day when things will be different. It is proper and expected that
immortal man would hope for and have faith in a finer future — but
of utmost importance also is the power to appreciate the present.
No matter what far futures lie before us (and we earnestly believe
that they are limitless and everlasting), yet always we live in the
present. We may sometimes rebel at all the uncertainties and at
all the undisclosed events, but those who would always force the
future, who are overly impatient for it to unfold, may let the happi-
ness and opportunities and obligations of the present pass them by.
Even if we could positively forsee the road far ahead, this wouldn't
alter the fact that we always live now. And happiness, after all, isn't
so much a matter of rushing the future as it is of learning to "respect
. . . the present hour." To be blind and indifferent to the possibilities
for happiness today, is too much like closing our eyes on an endless
journey, and always wondering when we are going to "get there."
There is always that which leads us on, that which keeps us full of
faith concerning the everlasting future, but an important part of
happiness comes with learning to live each day — in the quiet com-
panionship of loved ones, with useful and well-loved work willingly
done, and with gratitude for friends, for food, for each day's pro-
tection, and for each day's endurance. Whatever we would alter,
whatever evils we would outlaw, this is our day, our generation,
and we had better learn to live and to "labor while it is called today,"
being mindful of each day's opportunities and obligations. The
far future may be better. We doubt not that it will. But when the
future comes, it will be called the "present." When tomorrow comes,
it will be called "today." "This .... is the day for men to per-
form their labors." And one of the great gifts of life — one of the
surest sources of happiness — is the power to appreciate the present.
(Without announcement: Men's Chorus sang: "Guide Me to
Thee" — Huish-Cornwall )
Announcer: We have heard the men's chorus of the Tabernacle
Choir recall a hymn by O. P. Huish, as arranged by Mr. Cornwall,
"Guide Me To Thee."
And now Alexander Schreiner turns to a hymn tune by Joseph
J. Daynes: "Great God Attend While Zion Sings."
(Organ selection: "Great God Attend While Zion Sings."
Announcer: In closing from Temple Square the choir selects a
sacred song from the writings of Camille Saints-Saens, on words
paraphrased from scripture: "Arise, Shine, Thy Light is Come
Behold, thy King cometh .... Rejoice with all thy heart."
(Choir sang: "Arise, Shine, Thy Light is Come" — Saints-
Saens-Rogers )
CHOIR AND ORGAN BROADCAST 107
Announcer: Once more we leave you within the shadows of
the everlasting hills. May peace be with you, this day — and always.
This concludes the eleven hundred and second presentation con-
tinuing the 22nd year of this traditional broadcast from the Mormon
Tabernacle on Temple Square, brought to you by the Columbia
network and its affiliated stations, originating with Radio Station
KSL in Salt Lake City.
J. Spencer Cornwall conducted the singing of the Tabernacle
Choir. Alexander Schreiner was at the organ. The Spoken word by
Richard Evans.
Immediately following the conclusion of the Tabernacle Choir
and Organ Broadcast, the proceedings of the fifth session of the
Conference commenced.
President George Albert Smith:
We welcome everybody to Conference this morning.
This is the fifth session of the One-Hundred Twenty-first Semi-
Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. We are convened in the Tabernacle on Temple Square, Salt
Lake City, Utah.
These services will be broadcast in the Assembly Hall and in
Barratt Hall (60 North Main Street) over a loud speaking system
and by television.
The proceedings of this session will be broadcast over station
KSL of Salt Lake City, and by arrangement through KSL over the
stations named in the first session of the Conference.
This session will also be televised over the KSL television sta-
tion, channel five.
The choir singing for this morning's session of the Conference
will be by the Tabernacle Choir, with Elder J. Spencer Cornwall
conducting and with Elder Alexander Schreiner at the organ.
We will begin the services by the congregation and the Taber-
nacle Choir singing "We Thank Thee, O God, For a Prophet."
The opening prayer will be offered by President John L. Clarke,
Rexburg Stake, Idaho.
Singing by the choir and congregation, "We Thank Thee, O
God, For a Prophet."
President John L. Clarke of the Rexburg Stake offered the in-
vocation.
The Tabernacle Choir sang the hymn, "Joseph Smith's First
Prayer."
108 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday. October I Third Day
PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
With President Smith and others of the brethren and with all
of you I miss President George F. Richards, and our other close
associate, Brother Frank Evans. However, who knows but that they
may be nearer to us than we think.
Text
"And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed
Jesus.
"Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto
them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say,
being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou?" (John 1:37-38.)
About forty years ago, a stranger sat in this Tabernacle and
listened to a message such as those messages to which we have listened
throughout this conference. My informant didn't tell me who spoke
on that occasion, but he thought it was President Charles W. Pen-
rose. As the stranger and his host walked out from that meeting, the
visitor said to his companion, I would give all that I possess if I
knew that what that man has said this afternoon is true."
Well, he would not have to give all that he possessed to know
that; if he had but followed the example of these two disciples, he
might have learned, as they, the truth of what President Penrose, or
whoever it was, gave on that occasion.
Path to Knowledge
With your cooperative help and the inspiration of the Lord, I
should like to mark out that path.
"What seek ye?" and the answer, "Master, where dwellest
thou?" And thereby, "Come and see." These two disciples sought
Jesus upon the testimony of John the Baptist, whom they had been
following, and who only a day or so before, seeing Jesus walking
near Jordan, said, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away
the sin of the world." (John 1:29.) It seems that none left John's
side, at that time, but the next day John repeated his testimony, and
these two disciples, one of whom was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother,
followed Jesus. We can only conjecture how clearly or deeply they
sensed the fact that in thus seeking the Son of Man they were taking
the first step toward eternal life. But this we do know, that the Savior
has given the divine assurance that "... this is life eternal, that they
might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou
hast sent." (John 17:3.)
Quests Determine Successes
Man's success or failure, happiness or misery, depends upon what
PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY
109
he seeks and what he chooses. What a man is, what a nation is,
may largely be determined by his or its dominant quest. It is a
tragic thing to carry through life a low concept of it.
The great writer Carlyle says, "The thing a man does practically
believe, the thing a man does practically lay to heart, and know for
certain concerning his vital relations to this mysterious universe, and
his duty and destiny there, that is in all cases the primary thing for
him, and creatively determines all the rest. This is his religion; or
it may be his mere skepticism and no religion; the manner it is in
which he feels himself to be spiritually related to the unseen world
or no world. I say if you tell me what that is, you tell me to a very
great extent what the man is, what the kind of things he will do is."
The All-Important Quest
The disciples' answer to the question, "What seek ye?" gives
a key to man's highest and noblest quest: "Master, where dwellest
thou?" saying in effect, We desire to know thee and thy teachings.
They stayed with Jesus all that day, for it was the ninth hour. And
later Andrew sought his brother Simon and said, "... we have
found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ." (John
1:41.) "If . . . thou seek the Lord thy God," is the promise coming
down through the ages, "thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with
all thy heart and with all thy soul." (Deut. 4:29.)
This, then, brethren and sisters, is the all-important quest of
life: To seek God and Jesus Christ, to know whom is eternal life.
How We May Know God
The messages given in this conference have directly and indi-
rectly answered the question of how we may know him. Jesus ex-
pressed it clearly on one occasion when, attending the Feast of the
Tabernacles in Jerusalem, he declared to the Jews who marveled at
his preaching, "My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
"If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine,
whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." (John 7:16-17.)
In his Sermon on the Mount, he expressed the same thought in
these words: "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall
enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my
Father, which is in heaven." (Matt. 7:21.)
His Will
These statements awaken in the mind of the honest investigator
the great question, "What is God's will?" If we knew it, surely we
would obey it.
Well, Christ has not left us with that question unanswered.
His will is summarized in the memorable reply he gave to the lawyer
110 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October 1 Third Day
who asked him the question with a desire to entrap him, "Master,
which is the great commandment in the law?"
Answered the Savior: "... Thou shalt love the Lord they
God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
"This is the first and great commandment.
"And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour
as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the
prophets." (Matt. 22-36-39.)
Further, regarding the will of God, the Apostle Peter particu-
larized when, on the Day of Pentecost, with one accord the people
asked him and the other Apostles, "... Men and brethren, what
shall we do?"
"Repent," answered Peter," and be baptized every one of you
in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
"For this promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all
that are afar off even as many as the Lord our God shall call."
(Acts 2:37-39.)
To repent — this we should note carefully — is to feel regret,
contrition, or compunction for what one has done or omitted to do.
It means to change one's mind in regard to past or intended actions
or conduct on account of regret or dissatisfaction. It means to
conquer selfishness, greed, jealousy, fault-finding, and slander. It
means to control one's temper. It means to rise above the sordid
things which pure nature would prompt us to do to gratify our
appetites and passions, and to enter into the higher or spiritual
realm.
Thus we become, in the words of Peter, "... partakers of the
divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world
through lust." (II Peter 1:4.) Then Peter adds, "And beside this,
giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowl-
edge;
"And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience;
and to patience godliness;
"And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kind-
ness charity." (Ibid., 1:5-7.)
Now note this great promise: "For if these things be in you,
and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor
unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." {Ibid., 1:8.)
Joy Follows Obedience
These are the signposts along life's highway which if followed,
will lead any man to do the Lord's will, to know his Son, the Re-
deemer of the world, to know whom is eternal life. And while
we are gaining this great knowledge which leads to immortality,
PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY
111
we find the greatest joy in mortality that can be experienced by the
human soul.
"The best of all men are they who realize in daily life their
luminous hours and transmute their ideals into conduct and char-
acter. These are the soul architects who build their thoughts and
deeds into a plan, who travel . forward not aimlessly but toward a
destination." All the happiness that comes with spiritual gifts may
be theirs — love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith, meekness, temperance, friendship, communion with the infinite;
I repeat, communion with the infinite. All these and a thousand
other blessings that God gives free of charge are theirs.
"Earth gets its price for what earth gives us.
" 'Tis heaven alone that is given away,
" 'Tis only God may be had for the asking." (Lowell.)
Life's Great Exemplar
High in the scale of manhood stand those who ceaselessly as-
pire toward life's great Exemplar. This great Exemplar is Jesus
Christ, who among all leaders in history has wielded the greatest
influence upon the human family.
You have asked yourself, as have thousands of others, wherein
lies the secret of his greatness? You have probably answered,
"Why, it is in his divinity." Well, that is true, but he came to earth
as you and I, took upon himself mortality, and he exerted an in-
fluence among his fellows, in keeping with the natural laws just as
each individual here exerts a natural influence. Wherein is the
secret of his greatness, aside from his divinity? He defeated the
lawyer in argument, healed the sick where medicine failed, inspired
the greatest music ever written, filled hundreds of thousands of
libraries with books, inspired missionaries to go to all the world,
even to the darkest depths of Africa; yet, in none of the realms in
which men and women ordinarily win their laurels do you find
historians referring to Christ as having succeeded.
, 1 Supreme in Character
"In the realm of character," writes Charles Jefferson, "he was
supreme. The only thing which places a man above the beasts of
the field is his possession of the spiritual gifts which develop that
Christ-like character. Man's earthly existence is but a test as to
whether he will concentrate his efforts, his mind, and his soul upon
the things which contribute to the comfort and gratification of his
physical instincts and passions, or whether he will make as his
life's end and purpose the acquisition of spiritual qualities."
Aren't you students thrilled — I hope you are — with the recent
tendency among the alleged best thinkers, and I think some of them
are, particularly the man who wrote Man Does Not Stand Alone,
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Sunday, October 1 Third Day
in their appeal for humanity, for mankind to rise above the low,
the sensual, and develop the spirit that is within man. I think we
have made the turn from agnosticism into the realm of spirituality.
Priesthood Means Service
Last night we had here in the Tabernacle, Assembly Hall,
Barratt Hall, an estimated 14,000 men who hold the priesthood. I
don't know that you can find a more inspirational gathering any-
where on earth. Just to be with them was an inspiration. To those
14,000 and to those 250,000 throughout the Church who hold the
priesthood I should like to say: Our lives are wrapped up with the
lives of others. We are happiest as we contribute to the lives of
others. I say that because the priesthood you hold means that you
are to serve others. You represent God in the field to which you
are assigned. "Whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find
it." (Matt. 16:25.) This paradoxical saying of the Savior contains
the crowning element of the upright character — crowning, I say.
Here we touch an important phase of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Selfishness is subdued, in which greed and avarice must be sub-
ordinated to the higher principles of helpfulness and of kindliness.
"Do His Will"
"If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine,
whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." (John 7:17.)
Choosing the right with unvarying and unwavering determination,
resisting temptations from within and from without, cheerfulness in
the face of difficulties and experiences, reverence for God and re-
spect for your fellow men, willingness to assist in the establishment
of the kingdom of God — these, though you might miss some of the
emoluments of the world, will bring peace and happiness to your
soul, and through obedience to the principles and ordinances of the
gospel, bring immortality and eternal life. Your soul will rise in
ecstasy and clearer understanding of that great word of God given
in modern revelation: "This is my work and my glory, to bring to
pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39.) That
friend who said he would give all in the world if he knew it was
true can know if he will follow the example set down by the Savior.
In conclusion, as sure as you can tune in on the radio and hear
voices from afar, so sure am I that God our Father lives, and the
soul of man can commune with him through the Holy Spirit. I
give you that as my testimony; I know it. So sure am I that Jesus
Christ is the Savior of the world, through whom and only through
whom may mankind find happiness and peace. So sure am I that
the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored through Joseph Smith,
and the authority to represent God on earth is again given to man.
Oh, may he give us power to proclaim these truths to an unbelieving
world, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
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113
ELDER LEVI EDGAR YOUNG
Of the First Council of the Seventy
May my words express a love for God and mankind while I
speak to you, my brethren and sisters. A few friends of mine from
New York, members of the Episcopal Church, are in attendance at
these services. At home they attend their services at the church of
St. John the Divine, one of the most beautiful places of worship
ever erected in America. We bid you welcome. We are glad to
have you hear something of our beliefs, something of the great
truths of the Living God. We respect you in your worship and
your religious beliefs. It is one of the rich sayings of Joseph Smith,
the Prophet, that we believe in worshiping God according to the
dictates of our own consciences, and we allow every man the same
privilege, let him worship how, where, or what he may. We honor
you in your worship.
Testimonies of Church Members
You will hear from this pulpit this morning the testimony of
every Latter-day Saint who speaks. Far and wide in the world you
will hear the same testimony concerning this latter-day work which
was given to the world by the word of God to the Prophet Joseph
Smith. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in his Son,
Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost. It is our testimony that God
has given us the gospel of Jesus Christ, and that Joseph Smith, the
Prophet, was the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
day Saints. Testimony with us is a very divine thing. It is a sacred
trust and can come only to one who has opened his heart and mind
to hallowed living with earnest prayer and deep faith in God and
Jesus Christ. It is the most divine gift of all, and this testimony lies
deep in the heart of every member of the Church.
A Model City
When the Latter-day Saints crossed the Mississippi River in
the winter of 1846 and began their journey to the far west, they
left the city of Nauvoo, a city of beauty and high religious and
civic life. It had been built within a short period of time, but it
came to be, under the direction of the Prophet of God, the greatest
city, morally, in America. There was a civic consciousness that can
well become the model of the cities of our country today.
The people were rich in the Spirit of God, and they had a
culture all their own. The men and their families were reduced to
humble circumstances. They had little to eat, but living in their
wagons drawn by mules and oxen, they were making their way to
their new home in the West. They carried copies of the Bible and
the Book of Mormon with them. They had come to love books of
114 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October 1 Third Dag
literature and history, and they sang their psalmodies by night and
by day.
Heritage of American Indian
We have heard some of the brethren speak of the American
Indians in this conference. We are carrying the gospel to all the
tribes of America, and we have become particularly interested in the
traditions of these people. The Night Chant of the Navajo and the
Hako of the Pawnees have been translated into English. They are
mysterious but beautiful dramas. The Indians, if understood, de-
veloped fine artistic feeling; and it has been said that their traditions
will yet become the foundation for the richest American literature
and feeling. Everyone knows that the American Indian passed on
to us, and through us to the world, a heritage of utility beyond the
dreams of avarice. This was in such homely things as the inestimable
food plants, which he had brought from the wild to a high state of
domestication. Few seem to know that he has prepared a second
heritage of beauty, a gift of fine arts, illusions, and immaterial crea-
tions which rise above mere utilities as the mountains rise above the
plain. "The English find in the Arthurian romance a never-failing
inspiration." Americans in the future will surely realize an epic
grandeur in the song sequences and world stories of the first Ameri-
cans. We know that they once had their testimony of the Living
God and Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. The following short poem
will give an idea of the beauty of their thoughts. It was written
by a Tewa Indian:
Oh, our Mother, the Earth; oh, our Father, the Sky,
Your children are we, and with tired backs
We bring you the gifts that you love.
Then weave for us a garment of brightness;
May the warp be the white light of morning,
May the weft be the red light of evening,
May the fringes be the falling rain,
May the border be the standing rainbow.
Thus weave for us a garment of brightness
That we may walk fittingly where birds sing,
That we may walk fittingly where grass is green,
Oh, our Mother, the Earth; oh, our Father, the Sky!
High Regard for Youth
We Latter-day Saints have a high regard for the youth of the
world. It is our desire to have our homes influenced by the Spirit of
God, that our children may grow in a knowledge of what true re-
ligion is. I think we are all agreed that one great need of the
hour is to bring back the fine concept of the faith in God which
our forefathers had.
Yesterday Bishop Isaacson in his address referred with feeling
to this Tabernacle. In the early days of this state, the Mormon
ELDER LEVI EDGAR YOUNG
115
pioneers built many public buildings and memorials that bore wit-
ness to their love of the beautiful. Everything that they did to
create homes and cities showed a mingling of definite religious feeling
with the creations, and they thought of it all as God's work. It was
from their faith and trust that their genius developed in the days
of hardship and toil. There was something of emotional color in
what they did, a something that made them strive to unite the work
of their daily duties with the light of heaven. It was Ruskin who
said that
The power of the human mind had its growth in the wilderness;
much more must the conception, the love of beauty be an image of
God's daily work.
Mormon Tabernacle
This Mormon Tabernacle expresses something of the strength
of character and religious idealism of the Latter-day Saints. The
only building of its kind in the world, it is unique in the history of
American architecture. While its massiveness suggests a people
strong in spirit, conviction, and purpose, its lines indicate a splendid
adoption of scientific principles in architecture. It is a plain, oval-
shaped building, studded with heavy entrance doors all the way
around; there is no attempt at ornamentation of any kind. The build-
ing is a fine example of the utilizing of the resources of the land for
the purpose of having a place for divine worship. The building im-
presses one as an immense, irresistible force, "humanly super-
human," an expression of soverign intelligence and feeling. It is as
the great Ibsen has said of all art, "an illumination of life." The inter-
ior impresses one with its majestic, vaulted ceiling, and "the vastness
of the place grows upon one and inspires one with mingled feelings of
solemnity and admiration."
World-Famed Organ
The building of this world-famed organ is a dramatic story. It
is inseparably connected with the name of Joseph Ridges, a native
of England, who went to Australia as a youth and later emigrated
to America. In Australia he worked in an organ factory; while in
Sydney, Elder Ridges constructed a small pipe organ, and having
joined the Church, he was advised to take his instrument to Utah.
He immigrated to Utah, and shipped his little organ, in tin cases,
to San Pedro in California; he afterwards brought it to Utah by ox
team.
In the early sixties Elder Ridges was selected by President
Brigham Young to build an organ in the Tabernacle. After sub-
mitting preliminary drafts to President Young and his counselors,
Elder Ridges began making arrangements for the construction of
the instrument and was assisted by his associates, Shure Olsen, Neils
Johnson, Henry Taylor, Frank Woods, and others. Meetings were
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Third Day
held with these men almost daily, and the reports of each man's
work were heard. While one was collecting various specimens of
wood from the canyons of Utah, another was making good tools
with which to carve the wood, while still a third man was experi-
menting in making glue. Specimens of wood were sent by people
from all over Utah, and it was finally decided that the best wood
was found in the hills around Parowan and in Pine Valley, about
three hundred miles south of Salt Lake City. It was a fine grain
of white pine variety, free from knots and without much pitch or
gum. For the large pipes, it was especially well-adapted.
The large pipes, some of which measure thirty-two feet, re-
quired thousands of feet of timber. Over the long, lonely roads
labored the oxen, day by day, hauling the heavy logs to Salt Lake
City. At times there were as many as twenty large wagons, each
with three yoke of oxen drawing its loads. The roads were rough
and dusty, and many streams had to be bridged that the wagons
might pass over them without difficulty.
About one hundred men were employed constantly in the con-
struction of the organ, and it was dedicated in October 1867. It is
a majestic creation, and to this day, thousands come to listen to its
melodious strains. It is one of the great instruments of the world.
Casting your eye to the pinnacle of the center tower of the
temple, you see Cyrus Dallin's statue of the Angel Moroni, a beauti-
ful creation by that noted sculptor, who was a native of Springville,
Utah, and who died recently in Boston. I had the honor of his
acquaintance. He was one of the noblest men I ever knew. One
time in discussing his work, he said:
To believe in angels marks one who lives near to his God. It is one
of the most beautiful concepts a man can have. I am glad I came to
believe that Moroni, whoever he was in history, came back to earth again
as an angel from God's throne.
This is why Dallin created his masterpiece on yonder temple.
Wherever you go, you will find the buildings of pioneer days
always great structures with artistic features. The State of Utah
had its beginning over one hundred years ago when the pioneers
arrived in this valley, and it was in 1 850 that the Territory of Utah
was organized. The people brought with them their ideals, which
they had developed at Nauvoo. That city had a university and
public schools. The people built a "Seventy's Hall of Science,"
which was to have a great library. This is what a Methodist minister,
a Mr. Briar, wrote concerning the city before the Mormons had left
it:
Statue of Moroni
Accomplishments of Pioneers
ELDER LEVI EDGAR YOUNG
117
Instead of seeing a few miserable log cabins and mud hovels, which
I expected to find, I was surprised to find one of the most romantic
places I had visited in the west. The buildings, though many of them
were small and of wood, bore the marks of neatness which I had not
seen equalled in this country. The farspread plain at the bottom of the
hill was dotted over with habitations of men with such majestic pro-
fusion that I was almost willing to believe myself mistaken; and instead
of being in Nauvoo, 111., among Mormons, that I was in Italy at the City
of Leghorn. ... I gazed for some time with fond admiration upon the plain
below. Here and there arose a tall, majestic brick house, speaking loudly
of the untiring labor of the inhabitants, who have snatched the place from
the clutches of obscurity, and wrested it from the bonds of disease; and
in two or three short years rescued it from a dreary waste to transform
it into one of the first cities of the west. ... I found all the people engaged
in business — much more than any place I have visited since the hard times
commenced. I sought in vain for anything that bore the marks of immor-
ality. ... I could see no loungers about the streets, nor any drunkards
about the taverns. ... I heard not an oath in the place. I saw not a gloomy
countenance; all were cheerful, polite, and industrious. I conversed with
many leading men and found them well-informed, hospitable and generous.
I saw nothing but order and regulation in the society. . . .
Joseph Smith himself became a student of Greek and Hebrew,
and classes in the ancient languages were organized in the Kirtland
Temple, which the Prophet Joseph attended. The Mormon pioneers
established schools in Utah at the beginning of their activities here.
In 1850 they organized the first university west of the Missouri River,
and in 1851 a library was brought across the plains by ox team. It
had been purchased in New York City by Dr. John M. Bernhisel and
was the finest collection of historical, philosophical, scientific, and
literary works in the history of the American frontier. This collec-
tion contained the works of the classical writers of ancient Greece:
Homer, Sophocles, Plato, Aristotle; the Latin writers, Virgil, Tacitus,
and Herodotus; and the modern great writers, Shakespeare, Milton,
and Bacon. These are just a few of the authors of the books that
were brought in this great collection. The library from the beginning
received copies of the New York Herald, New York Evening Post,
the Philadelphia Saturday Courier, and the North American Review.
Of the scientific works there were Newton's Principia, Herschel's
Outlines of Astronomy, and Von Humboldt's Cosmos. The treatises
on philosophy included the works of John Stuart Mill, Martin Luther,
John Wesley, and Emanuel Swedenborg.
Music and Drama
The ideals and daily lives of a people are judged by their stand-
ards of amusements. Among the fine arts encouraged by the pioneers
of Utah were music and the drama, and hardly had the colonizers
planted their fields of grain and begun building their homes when
they built a theater in this wilderness — a theater that in pioneer days
noted actors visited, among whom was Sir George Pauncefort of
Drury Lane Theatre in London. He played Hamlet, and from that
time on great artists graced the stage of the old theatre, including
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Sunday, October 1 Third Day
Edwin Booth, Lawrence Barrett, and many others. So successful
were these early pioneers in carrying out their ideals that M. B.
Leavitt, in his Fifty Years of Theatrical Management, says:
Sweeping as the statement may seem, I do not believe that the theater
has ever rested on a higher plane, both as to its purpose and its offerings,
than at Salt Lake City, the capital of Mormondom.
Love For Beauty and Truth
Even when the early-day Missionaries went to England — and
this as early as 1837 — they went with open minds to learn everything
they could that would be conducive of the ways of God. Let me here
recite to you an example of love for beauty and truth when three
missionaries from Salt Lake City in 1857 wended their way to the
Missouri River, called as they were on missions to England. Seymour
B. Young, Phillip Margetts, and David Wilkins pulled their hand-
cart from Salt Lake City to the Missouri River, where they were able
to take a train at Council Bluffs for New York. During that long
journey on foot — for they walked all the way, camping at night on
the streams of water — they would have their supper, consisting of
dried meat and bread, and before rolling up in their blankets to get
their rest, they always had their prayer to God.' One night, we are
told by one of these men in his journal, they sat by their fire, and
Phillip Margetts, who became one of the noted actors of the Salt
Lake stage and who was known in New York and London for his
ability as an actor, recited the words of Hamlet:
. . . What a piece of work is man! how noble in reason! how infinite
in faculties! in form and moving how express and admirable! in action
how like an angel! in apprehension how like a god! the beauty of the
world! the paragon of animals!
And then he gave another of his favorite quotations, from Macbeth:
Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. . .
Appreciation of Ideals
To the youth, to the boys and girls of the Church, if you could
only realize how our forefathers expressed their ideals of culture and
learn to abide by those ideals today, you would know what happiness
means. If this appreciation could grow in your hearts, there would
be a revival of the stage as we used to have it, which would be a re-
vival of the plays of Shakespeare and Moliere and Corneille, and
all the masters of the great literature of the past. There would be
ELDER LEVI EDGAR YOUNG 119
an appreciation of music and the drama, of literature and sculpture,
and the old ideals would come back to us as expressed by the Prophet
Joseph Smith:
Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a
house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a
house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God.
(D. & C. 88:119.)
And do thou grant. Holy Father, that all those who shall worship
in this house, may be taught words of wisdom out of the best books,
and they may seek learning even by study, and also by faith, as thou
hast said. (Ibid., 109:14.)
O Lord, we delight not in the destruction of our fellow men: their
souls are precious before thee. (Ibid., 109:43.)
Remember the kings, the princes, the nobles, and the great ones of
the earth, and all people, and the churches, all the poor, the needy, and
the afflicted ones of the earth. (Ibid., 109:55.)
These are just a mere semblance of the teachings of Joseph
Smith. Think of what they should mean to the students of univer-
sities and colleges. Think of what America will regain when nations
accept this divine truth; as the Prophet Joseph Smith expressed it:
"I teach them correct principles and they govern themselves."
To the youth of this land I give these words of Sir Francis
Drake, who sailed up the Pacific Coast at the close of the sixteenth
century, and then on around the world:
Men pass away, but people abide. See that you hold fast the heritage
we leave you, yea, and teach your children its value, that never in the
coming centuries their hearts may fail them, or their hand grow weak.
Hitherto we have been too much afraid. Henceforth, we will fear only
God.
May God ever direct us all in our holy work, I ask in the name
of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Tabernacle Choir and the congregation sang the hymn,
"The Spirit of God Like a Fire Is Burning."
President George Albert Smith
I am sure you will be interested in knowing that all of our
friends who came to Conference today are not in this building.
There are 2,850 in Barratt Hall and 2,021 in the Assembly Hall, in
addition to the few that are in this building. (Laughter)
We will now hear from Elder Joseph F. Merrill, of the Council
of the Twelve.
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Third Day
ELDER JOSEPH F. MERRILL
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
Many who are not visibly present may be listening to the pro-
ceedings of this conference by reason of the marvels of modern
radio. I greet you all.
Cause of Troublous Conditions
Much is said and written these days about the troublous con-
ditions prevailing locally, nationally, and internationally. The war
in Korea during recent weeks has perhaps claimed most attention in
newspaper headlines. But talk of war and rumors of war also has
come from other quarters. Rising costs and prices have likewise
claimed much attention. Labor-management troubles have shared in
the headlines. Partisan politics have stirred up anger and bitterness.
Looking in any direction you will see anything but harmony and
peaceful conditions. Why all of this, one may ask. Are all these
things necessary? Does God will them? In their ignorance some
say, "Yes."
During the three years we traveled about Europe, 1933-36, we
learned that the feeling was more or less general that there is no God
whose children we are, and who loves us as a kindly parent loves
his children; if so, he would not have permitted the great World
War (the first one, we now call it). Such a statement implies that
God is responsible for wars — something that is wholly false. God has
given "free agency" to every child born into mortality, a priceless gift
for which each recipient will be held accountable. God is not respon-
sible for our wars nor for any other of our many troubles and sinful
acts. This truth is one of the many characteristic teachings of Mor-
monism, defined as the teachings and doctrines of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Law of Cause and Effect
We bring our troubles upon ourselves, be it ignorantly or other-
wise. We live in a world and a universe governed by immutable
laws which, if fully obeyed, result in beautiful harmony and peace.
This is true of both the material and the spiritual realms — so teach
authorities in the fields of science and religion.
According to the Prophet Joseph Smith,
There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the founda-
tions of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated — ■
And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to
that law upon which it is predicated. (D. 6 C. 130:20-21.)
Human experiences testify to the truth of these statements.
Scientists have long taught that every phenomenon in nature is the
120
Sunday, October 1
ELDER JOSEPH F. MERRILL
121
result of antecedent causes. This fact is commonly known as the
law of cause and effect.
Religion a Way of Life
Last April, a few days following the annual conference, a lady
spoke to me on the street and asked how I dared to mix politics and
religion in a conference address. My reply was that I understand
our religion is essentially a way of life and therefore covers in a
broad way the whole field of moral human relations as indicated by
articles eleven, twelve, and thirteen of our faith. As you all know,
we do not limit our religion to the teaching of a set of theological
doctrines. One of our fundamental teachings is that faith without
works is dead. ( See James 2: 14-26. )
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the
kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is
in heaven. (Matt. 7:21.)
So said Jesus in his great Sermon on the Mount.
On another occasion, a lawyer asked Jesus,
Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all
thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment.
And the second is like unto it. Thou shalt love thy neighbour as
thyself.
On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
(Ibid., 22:36-40.)
These teachings we wholeheartedly accept. We interpret the
word "neighbor" in this commandment as meaning our fellow men.
In a brief amplification of the second commandment, Jesus said:
. . . whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so
to them: for this is the law and the prophets. (Ibid., 7:12.)
This requirement is generally called the Golden Rule. This
requirement is implied in the thirteenth article of our faith, which
is stated as follows:
We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and
in doing good to all men. . . .
Repentance Needed
I began this talk by naming a few of the many troublous con-
ditions that afflict this country. Why do these conditions exist? They
are all man-made, hence could be eliminated if men had the desire
and the will to eliminate them. But this will never be done until men
repent of their evil ways and stop doing the things that have brought
about these conditions. To be more specific, among other things we
must control our selfishness, not an easy thing to do; for selfishness
122 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday. October 1 Third Day
is an inherited weakness, an inborn quality that every man possesses
to a greater or less degree. However, it may be manifest in ways that
are commendable or damnable. In the twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew
is written a beautiful parable wherein the Lord said,
For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye
gave me drink: . . .
Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me. . . .
(Matt. 25:35-36.)
Asked when they had done this, the Lord replied,
. . . Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my
brethren, ye have done it unto me. (Ibid., 25:40.)
Yes, we serve the Lord by unselfishly and righteously serving
our fellow men. And this is what our missionaries at home and abroad
are trying to do. As a reward, they develop a deep love for the people
among whom they labor and experience joys, delights, and satis-
factions to a degree and of a nature that enables them to say truth-
fully they greatly enjoyed their missions and would gladly return to
them if called to return. Yes, these missionaries were out there at
their own expense giving their full time to unselfish efforts to deliver
a message that if accepted and lived would be an everlasting blessing
to the recipients.
Cause of Troubles
Many different answers may be given to the question: Why is
the world — people in every land and clime — in an uncertain, troubled
condition? The nature of current troubles is such that many people
are looking ahead with fear and almost hopeless despair as to the
outcome. There are intelligent and informed people who see the
third world war as imminent and certain to come in the not distant
future. And hearing or knowing something of the enormous des-
tructiveness of current implements of war, they have reason to feel
panicky by thoughts of World War III.
But why is there danger of such a war breaking? One answer
is the inordinate, wicked selfishness of men in positions of power.
Was there a more selfish, greedy, ambitious national head than
Adolph Hitler at the outbreak of World War II? If uncontrolled, the
selfishness of men in power will lead to the deadliest war this world
has ever known.
But most of our perplexing troubles are not of an international
nature. They arise in our homes, communities, and nation, and many
of them are also due to some type of wicked selfishness.
What is the basic cause of the inflationary tendencies of the last
few years? I know the answer that economists usually give. It is
more or less stereotyped. I am not an economist, only a layman, but
I have an answer, and I believe it is a correct one. The basic cause is
selfishness. But selfishness may be commendable or damnable. It is
ELDER JOSEPH F. MERRILL
123
commendable selfishness that motivates our missionaries — their
desire to help and bless their fellow men. They are activated by
the spirit of the Golden Rule. But selfishness ceases to be com-
mendable when it goes beyond the limits of the Golden Rule. It
then becomes more or less sinful, depending, of course, on the
circumstances.
Wage and Price Increases
About the time of the surrender of Japan in 1945, the officers
of some labor unions began to stir up an agitation for an increase
in wages. They insisted that their members should continue to have
the same weekly income as they received during the war — the same
for forty hours each week as previously received for forty-eight
hours. Hence a demand was made for a wage increase of thirty cents
an hour. But they insisted there should be no increase in prices, no
increase in the cost of living — an absurdity. When the cost of pro-
duction goes up, must not prices also go up if business is to continue?
Well, what was the outcome? There were demands, strikes, dis-
turbances, etc., and finally a settlement was made, on the recommend-
ation of the President, giving a wage increase of eighteen and one-
half cents an hour. This increase became general in all the big pro-
duction industries. How about prices? Of course they rose — the cost
of living went up. On this account, the following year there were
more demands, agitations, strikes, and finally settlements giving
a second wage increase, followed by another rise in the cost of
living. This was essentially the story of the third year, of the
fourth year, and now of the fifth year, the result being an in-
flationary spiral, which still continues, with the highest wages in
history for labor in the productive industries and a corresponding
increase in the cost of living. It seems, therefore, that increased
wages are largely responsible for inflation in this country during
recent years. But a sad part of the story is that the majority of
workers in the country have been wronged by the inflation that has
followed wage increases — their incomes have not increased as fast
as prices have risen.
Inflation Hurts Millions
In another way, inflation has hurt the millions of loyal, thrifty
Americans who invested their savings in war bonds. A depreciation of
the purchasing power of the dollar has resulted in the loss of many
billions of dollars to those who bought the bonds. The many millions
of insurance policies of all kinds have been deflated, of course. And
these facts seem not to have bothered in the least those who are
running the government. At any rate, I have not heard of it. As a
matter of justice to all, should not the government do everything
feasible to keep the purchasing power of the dollar constant? Who
124 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday. October 1 Third Dag
has been benefited by inflation? Certainly the vast majority have
been hurt.
Taft-Hartley Law
I spoke of labor union bosses. There are undoubtedly officers
of labor unions who are good, honorable men who are willing to
do what is fair, right, and just in their dealings. And certainly the
majority of members of the labor unions are good, loyal Americans
and would not knowingly be guilty of doing things hurtful to their
fellow men. But it appears that multitudes of these are misinformed by
some of their crafty leaders who have told them, for instance, that
the Taft-Hartley labor law enslaves labor and that all its congres-
sional supporters should be defeated in the coming November elec-
tion. But if I understand the matter aright, this law does limit the
power of selfish union bosses, but gives a correspondingly larger
measure of freedom to union members than they hitherto had. I am
willing to trust informed, honest, loyal American workers. All I
ask union members to do before they vote for candidates demanding
the repeal of this law is to make a study of the law that their leaders
demand shall be repealed and then vote conscientiously. In this
country the ballot is secret. Everyone has the God-given right of
free agency, but God will hold him responsible for how he uses it.
Labor Union Bosses
Speaking of labor union bosses, may I ask if you read the Deseret
News editorial published September 24, 1950, entitled "John L.
Lewis Bares Fangs Again With a Grisly Grin and Growl." In that
editorial attention was called to an epistle written by Lewis in which
he says:
Taft was born encased in velvet pants and has lived to rivet an
iron collar around the necks of millions of Americans. He is the relent-
less, albeit witless, tool of the oppressors of labor.
Do you see why I urge all members of labor unions to become
familiar with the provisions of the Taft-Hartley law before they
vote? Let them see for themselves if the law does not give them
freedom rather than enslavement.
Here is another illustration of dogmatic selfishness shown by
union bosses. During several weeks recently, the General Electric
Company was trying to negotiate new contracts with one of the
unions (a new one) representing its employees. In the company's
News Letter of August 4 were these statements:
The burden of I.U.E.'s argument is now admittedly that it just
doesn't count whenever we willingly offer or put into effect any benefits
that do not publicly appear to have been wrung out of us by the union.
. . . And I.U.E. argues that it can't afford to credit us with anything
we are willing to do voluntarily. . . . I.U.E. inferred that others had
never been rugged enough in collectively bargaining with us.
ELDER JOSEPH F. MERRILL
125
Do these statements show any desire to be fair?
Price Increases Unwarranted
Speaking again of sinful selfishness as the chief factor in pro-
ducing inflation, may I suggest that most of us are more or less
guilty of sinful selfishness — we go beyond the limits of the Golden
Rule in promoting our own interests. This is understandable but
hardly justifiable in the light of our teachings. To the extent that we
do thus go, we violate the second great commandment, do we not?
When the Korean war broke, prices immediately went up. Why?
Because of the sinful selfishness of those who had things to sell.
When goods become scarce, their price is increased. Why? For the
same reason. In such cases the production costs have not increased,
but the selfishness of vendors must be satisfied.
About forty-seven years ago Cache Valley in northern Utah
had a long winter. The price of hay for cattle rose sharply. Marriner
W. Merrill, president of the Logan Temple, was told by the manager
of his farm affairs that he had several tons of hay to spare. The
demand was keen. Fifteen dollars a ton and more was being offered.
Brother Merrill was silent for a few moments and then advised
that as much hay be sold as could be spared. And the price? Eight
dollars a ton. That, he added, is a fair price for the cost of production,
but do not let more than one ton go to the same individual. If the
spirit he indicated prevailed throughout all America, how much better
it would be for all of us and how much greater our happiness! Then
officials of corporations and labor unions would be motivated to be
fair and honest in all their negotiations.
Live the Golden Rule
Yes, among the troublous situations that America faces are
inflation, communism, and the monopoly of labor union bosses; and
the most imminent of these three are inflation and monopoly. Both
of these would disappear overnight if all concerned would immedi-
ately repent and live the Golden Rule. And this all members of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are obliged to do by the
covenants they made in the waters of baptism and in partaking of the
holy sacrament.
Testimony
Now in conclusion, may I say that three years ago last April
I stood in this pulpit and asked the question: "Did Joseph Smith,
the fourteen-year old boy out in the woods actually and really see
two highly glorious heavenly personages, God the Father and Jesus
Christ the Son, and hear the voice of each one?" If a fair, openminded,
competent judge were required to make a thorough study of all rela-
tive material and then give answer to the question, it undoubtedly
would be affirmative — so strong is the evidence. For myself I am very
126 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday. October 1 Third Day
sure that just as certainly as you are sitting there and I am standing
here, I know that God lives and that this is his Church. He, himself,
through the Holy Ghost, has revealed this to me. In answer to prayer
I have been the happy recipient several times of revelation direct from
God, given verbally, once orally. Hence I positively know that he
lives. In recent years I have publically related some of these experi-
ences many times. Many thousands of other Latter-day Saints have
testimonies as strong as mine. But all true Latter-day Saints are
firm in our precious faith. May all of us let it be our guiding light and
keep us loyal to the leadership of the First Presidency of the Church,
I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER MARION G. ROMNEY
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve Apostles
I earnestly invite each of you, my brethren and sisters, to say a
prayer that while I stand before you, you may get something out
of what I say that will do you good, and that what I say will inspire
what you get. I rely wholly upon the Spirit of the Lord to direct me
on this occasion.
Teachings Not New
During this conference I have listened intently to everything
that has been said. What has been said has thrilled me, although
I have not heard anything much that is new. During the past weeks
I have read many conference addresses given from this pulpit
during the last twenty-one years, and I have not found much in those
addresses that was new, but I thrilled with every one of them.
Truth, sufficient to guide us through our lives and back into the
very presence of God, was revealed through the Prophet Joseph
Smith during the early years of this last dispensation. The Lord
counseled the brethren in that day that they were to pretend to no
new revelation. They were to speak and teach what had been revealed
through the Prophet Joseph Smith. In the main, that is what we are
still doing.
I know, of course, that there have been new revelations given
since the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith. I know that every man
who has stood at the head of the Church from then until now has
received revelations from the Lord. I know President Smith receives
them today. But not many new doctrines have been revealed since the
Prophet's time.
Build-Up of Spirits
What we get out of general conference is a build-up of our
spirits as we listen to those particular principles and practices of the
gospel which the Lord inspires the present leadership of the Church
to bring to our attention at the time. He knows why he inspired
ELDER MARION G. ROMNEY 127
Brother Joseph F. Merrill to give the talk he just gave. He knows
why he inspired the other brethren who have talked in this conference
to say what they have said. It is our high privilege to hear, through
these men, what the Lord would say if he were here. If we do not
agree with what they say, it is because we are out of harmony with
the Spirit of the Lord.
Welfare Work
I desire to say a word or two about the work that I give a great
deal of my time to, the welfare work. I hope they will be worth re-
membering. There are few of the brethren who so consistently go to
all the stakes in the Church as I. I go because I am sent. I feel very
humble in it and very grateful that the brethren have enough con-
fidence in me to send me about the Church to tell the stake presidents,
bishops, Relief Society presidents, and other welfare workers some
things about the welfare program.
I thank you, my brethren and sisters, for your faithfulness in
coming to the regional and stake welfare meetings that we call. I have
never called one, and I never shall call one that is not authorized
by the Presidency of the Church. Last year, of the 173 stake presi-
dents invited to attend the welfare budget meetings, 163 attended.
Of the 172 Relief Society stake presidents invited, 163 attended.
That made the attendance record of the Relief Society presidents
about 55/100ths of one percent better than the record of the stake
presidents. The record of attendance of the bishops and the inde-
pendent branch presidents was, however, 61/100ths of one percent
better than the record of attendance of ward and independent branch
Relief Society presidents. Thus the attendance record of the brethren
was about 5/100ths of one percent better than that of the women —
quite a record for men. Welfare workers who attended those meet-
ings traveled 488,323 man-miles coming and going. You have, my
brethren and sisters, made a marvelous record of loyalty to the
welfare plan.
1951 Welfare Budget
Just now we are in the midst of touring the Church with the
proposed 1951 welfare production budget. We are not inviting so
many people to the meetings this year as we did last year, because
we want to get down in our conferences with you to the discussion
of some of the details of the welfare operations. We do not feel
we need to promote the welfare program as an idea so much as we
have done in the past, because we believe that most of the people
are now converted. But we do need to perfect its operation.
First, we want to get to the point in the program just as soon
as possible where the necessity to call upon the Saints for cash
contributions to meet the annual Church welfare production budget
is eliminated. We are presently doing two things to accomplish this.
In the first place, under the direction of the brethren we have taken
128 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October 1 Third Day
out of the proposed budget a couple of items which required the
raising of cash: transportation of coal and cash for the purchase of
cloth. As a result, the 1951 welfare production budget will be
$132,000 less than it would have been with these two items left in.
Second, with these items eliminated, we are urging that the
budget be produced in commodities and not in cash. This can only
be done by getting in hand the means with which to produce the
commodities — permanent welfare production projects. We have
nearly enough projects to produce our budget needs, but we are
a little out of balance. Some projects are larger than they need be,
while in some places there are no production projects. If, somehow,
those who have no projects could buy into the larger projects, so
that all the production could be turned into the welfare program, it
would help. All those who have no projects will, of course, need
to get them. We are stressing this matter as we go about the Church.
Not a Dole
Another thing we are doing is emphasizing the counsel given
by the brethren from the beginning that the welfare program must
not become a dole. Our people must be given the opportunity to work
for what they get. In the spirit of the Master let us give them an
opportunity to work so that we do not violate the primary purpose
of the welfare plan. When they set if up, the brethren said, "Our
primary purpose was to set up, insofar as it might be possible, a
system under which the curse of idleness would be done away with,
the evils of a dole abolished, and independence, industry, thrift, and
self-respect be once more established among our people. . . . Work
is to be re-enthroned as the ruling principle of the lives of cur
Church membership."
Principle of the Fast
Now one more point: We desire to encourage throughout the
Church the principle of the fast — abstaining from the eating of
two meals on fast day and giving the equivalent thereof to the
bishop. A minimum fast offering is the equivalent of the two meals,
and a maximum fast offering may be measured by the greatness of
one's heart. God bless you that you may continue in this great pro-
gram with all the energy of your souls.
If I had time. I would like to give you a lesson on it out of the
first six verses of the 105th section of the Doctrine and Covenants,
but I do not have time. I will simply say this: The reason the Saints
did not go back into Jackson County, Missouri, and redeem Zion at
the time the Prophet came from Kirtland with Zion's Camp was
because the members of the Church in Zion would not impart of
their substance, as becometh Saints, to the poor and afflicted among
them. We may find that just such a consequence rests upon our
performance.
God bless you, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER HAROLD B. LEE
129
ELDER HAROLD B. LEE
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
As another great conference of the Church draws near its
closing session, it remains for each here in attendance at the confer-
ence or listening on the air to formulate for himself that which to
him has been the cardinal teaching and central theme of the con-
ference and then to apply it in his own practice. As I have sat here,
I have tried to do that for myself. I would like to tell you what my
feelings are about that which has transpired in this conference.
Influence of President Richards
The first thing which has characterized it has been the feeling,
particularly among the members of the Twelve and to some degree
by all the General Authorities, and put into words by President
McKay this morning, that this conference has been greatly in-
fluenced by President George F. Richards, and likewise, perhaps, in
a degree, by all those who have departed this life as leaders of the
Church. President George F. Richards was one of the noblest among
them. I have felt his influence as President McKay has expressed
our feelings.
False Prophets to Deceive
The second thing, that to me has been the cardinal theme,
is that we must prepare to meet that of which the Master warned
when the disciples asked him how they would know that his coming
again was nigh at hand. He said to them:
For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew
great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall de-
ceive the very elect. (Matthew 24:24.)
The Prophet Joseph Smith, in his inspired version of that same
scripture, added these significent words: "who are the elect, according
to the covenant." This is what has been said, in effect, in this con-
ference: Unless every member of this Church gains for himself
an unshakable testimony of the divinity of this Church, he will be
among those who will be deceived in this day when the "elect
according to the covenant" are going to be tried and tested. Only
those will survive who have gained for themselves that testimony.
Concern of Missionary
I heard from a young man up in the Northwestern States Mis-
sion, who had only been there a few months — a fine, stalwart,
handsome young man — he. had just received what he had interpreted
to himself as a testimony. He told how he had been anxious in the
circle where he had lived, because members of his own household
and the circle of his friends had ridiculed ofttimes, after the con-
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Third Day
ference had ended, what had been said in those conferences, and
he had been shocked about it. Then he said, as the tears filled his
eyes after he had borne his own testimony, "If I could hear my
own father and mother stand up and bear their own testimonies, it
would be the greatest thrill of my life."
The other day one of the bishops from the Big Horn country
of Wyoming came to my office, and told me that frequently there
came to their conferences visiting brethren who talked about those
who criticize the General Authorities of the Church, and about
the "isms" that are springing up in apostate groups. He said, "You
know, Brother Lee, our people don't know what these brethren are
talking about up there in our ward. We never hear these criticisms.
They accept you brethren as the representatives of the Living God,
and we don't hear what they say is happening elsewhere."
As I thought of that bishop's statement, I remembered the words
of Brigham Young:
Were your faith concentrated upon the proper object, your confidence
unshaken, your lives pure and holy, every one fulfilling the duty of his
or her calling according to the priesthood and capacity bestowed upon
you, you would be filled with the Holy Ghost, and it would be as im-
possible for any man to deceive and to lead you to destruction as for a
feather to remain unconsumed in the midst of intense heat.
And then this:
I am more afraid that this people have so much confidence in their
leaders that they will not inquire for themselves of God whether they are
being led by him. I am fearful they settle down in a state of blind security,
trusting their eternal destiny in the hands of their leaders with a reck-
less confidence that in itself would thwart the purposes of God in their
salvation, and weaken that influence they could give their leaders if they
know for themselves by the revelations of Jesus Christ that they are
led in the right way. Let every man and woman know by the whisperings
of the Spirit of God to themselves whether their leaders are walking in
the way the Lord dictates or not.
To me, there is a tremendous truth. It is not alone sufficient
for us as Latter-day Saints to follow our leaders and to accept
their counsel, but we have the greater obligation to gain for our-
selves the unshakable testimony of the divine appointment of these
men and the witness that what they have told us is the will of
our Heavenly Father.
I had a shock and a startling truth borne in upon me by an
experience six months ago, when following April conference, the
General Authorities and their wives met in a semi-annual party and
dinner up at our Institute of Religion near the University of Utah.
As a part of the program, the committee in charge had arranged
Criticism of Authorities
Divine Appointment of Leaders
ELDER HAROLD B. LEE
131
for a recital of the conferences a hundred years ago, from the pre-
ceding October. They read the minutes from the conference of 1 849.
They then brought quotations from the sermons delivered by the
First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve in October 1899.
Then they reproduced on the public address system quotations from
the sermons of every one of the present Presidency and the Council
of the Twelve. When they put into my hands the quotation from
the one in that other Council fifty years ago, whose place I was now
filling, I was startled, for I was to read the last recorded statement
of a man who lost his standing in the Council and later his mem-
bership in the Church of Jesus Christ. And I was more startled when
I read this statement from his last recorded sermon. This is what he
had said:
I know that the children of men never were converted till they saw
that the power of God rested upon his servants, and the spirit of God
went down into their hearts like fire.
He knew, and he came to know by the bitter experience of his
own apostasy that the thing which lost him his standing in the
Church was that he lost his testimony of the divine appointment of
the prophets of God, and that the fire which once burned in his
heart had gone out. When I realized that one like him had failed,
and that I was now sitting in the chair once occupied by him, it gave
me a tremendous feeling of responsibility and a fear lest I might
fall, by foolishness and because of the deceit and cunning which I
have come to believe may overtake any of us. False prophets and
christs, as foretold by the Savior, may come to deceive us not alone
in the name of religion, but if we can believe the history of Italy
and Germany and Russia, they may come under the label of poli-
ticians or of social planners or so-called economists, deceitful in
their offerings of a kind of salvation which may come under such
guise.
Personal Testimony
Five years ago, following the death and burial of President
Heber J. Grant, the Council of the Twelve met in one of the most
solemn meetings I have ever attended as one of the junior members
of the Council, in one of the upper rooms in the Salt Lake Temple.
They had met there to consider the appointment of a succeeding
President of the Church. The chairs usually occupied by the First
Presidency were vacant, and for hours the members of the Twelve,
each in his turn, expressed his feelings fully on the matter of the
new appointment. After the decision was made, President George
Albert Smith took his place and called to his side President Clark
and President McKay. There was something that happened to me
in that meeting. I was willing then, as always, to listen to the brethren
and to follow them, but as they took their places at the front of
our council room, there came into my heart a testimony and an
132 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October 1 Thitd Day
assurance that these were the men who had been chosen by God's
appointment, and I knew it because of the revelation of the Spirit
to my own soul.
May I close with only this one thought taken from one of
our own hymns:
Soon the earth will hear the warning,
Then the judgments will descend!
Oh! before the days of sorrow,
Make the Lord of Hosts your friend.
Then, when dangers are around you.
And the wicked are distressed,
You, with all the Saints of Zion,
Shall enjoy eternal rest.
From "See, the Mighty Angel Flying"
God help us to gain that divine, assuring testimony which I have
in my soul. I know that God lives and know that this is his work.
I know that these men are divinely appointed servants of God.
And I bear you this testimony in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
President George Albert Smith
We have a good many people come here, but not many have the
privilege you have had of sitting and listening to men whose lives are
devoted to the service of the Master.
Brother Harold B. Lee, of the Council of the Twelve, has just
spoken to us and he will be our last speaker this morning.
I never come to this Tabernacle that I do not feel an unusual
presence, when I think of how it was erected and how the people
struggled to prepare a place for worship, and the temple to the
east of us, the Assembly Hall, all these walls that hold these build-
ings— there is not anything in all the world like them. Many people
would like to take down these walls. I want to say these walls are
sacred to me because I have played around them ever since I was
a child and I have seen hundreds of men come and go, working
around here.
This morning we are in comfort. The houses that we are in, and
the adjoining houses, are kept in order. The beautiful grounds with
flowers and shrubs, hundreds of people remark they have never
seen anything like it in all the world, and yet this has all been done
by men, and some women, who desired to make the place where we
worship our Heavenly Father as comfortable and delightful as
possible.
By the way, that brings to my mind the fact that one of the
most faithful workers we have had on this block, looking after this
building and other things, Brother Ben Handley, is at home sick,
unable to be with us. He has always been here, always been on hand,
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 133
and I wonder sometimes if we realize how much one person may
mean.
As I look through the congregation this morning I see Aunt
Mary Smith, the widow of President Joseph F. Smith, one of the
older people of the Church. She nearly always sits in the same place,
or about the same place, and I am delighted to see her here this
morning. I also miss Sister Ruth May Fox, who is past ninety years
of age and not able to be here, but I am satisfied she will be listening
in. I hope she will hear her name mentioned from this House of the
Lord. We must not only appreciate our own blessings and our privi-
leges, but we should keep in mind the others who need us, and I am
sure if we do we will continue to enjoy what we have now and the
Lord will add to it.
The Tabernacle Choir will now sing the "Hallelujah Chorus"
from the "Mount of Olives."
The closing prayer will be offered by President Shirley M.
Palmer, Oneida Stake, Idaho, after which the Conference will stand
adjourned until two o'clock this afternoon.
The proceedings of that session will be broadcast over KSL
at Salt Lake City, and by arrangement through KSL, over the stations
named in the first session of the Conference. That session will also be
televised over the KSL television station, channel five.
Important messages and calls coming to us for persons supposed
to be in attendance at Conference will be announced at the dismissal
of this meeting over the loudspeaking system on the grounds.
The choir music for this session has been furnished by the
Tabernacle Choir, with Elder J. Spencer Cornwall conducting and
Elder Alexander Schreiner at the organ.
After singing and prayer we will be dismissed until 2 o'clock.
Brethren and sisters, let us take from this house to our homes,
and wherever we may go, the influence that comes from our
Heavenly Father and that is always here when we meet in worship,
and keep it with us during the remainder of our lives.
Singing by the choir, "Hallelujah Chorus."
The benediction was offered by President Shirley M. Palmer
of the Oneida Stake.
Conference adjourned until 2 p.m.
THIRD DAY
AFTERNOON MEETING
The concluding session of the Conference was held in the
Tabernacle at 2:00 p.m.
President George Albert Smith presided and conducted the
services.
134 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday. October 1 Third Day
The Salt Lake Tabernacle Choir furnished the choral singing
for this session.
President George Albert Smith:
This is the closing session of the One Hundred Twenty-first
Semi- Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. We are convened in the Tabernacle on Temple Square,
Salt Lake City, Utah.
These services will be broadcast in the Assembly Hall and in
Barratt Hall (60 North Main) over a loud speaking system and by
television.
The proceedings of this session will be broadcast over station
KSL at Salt Lake City, and by arrangement throught KSL, over
the stations named in the first session of the Conference.
This session will also be televised over the KSL television station,
channel five.
The choir music for this session will be rendered by the Taber-
nacle Choir, Elder J. Spencer Cornwall conducting and Elder Frank
W. Asper at the organ.
We will begin this service by the Tabernacle Choir singing
"Father, Be Ever Near Us."
The opening prayer will be offered by President Perry Edward
Tingey of the Sacramento Stake, California.
Singing by the choir, "Father Be Ever Near Us."
The invocation was offered by President Perry Edward Tingey
of the Sacramento Stake.
President George Albert Smith:
We mentioned the names of one or two people this morning
that have passed away, and I think we should call attention to
one person whose name was not mentioned, whom all of you do not
know, but many of you do, and that is Roscoe W. Eardley, one of
the most faithful workers in the Welfare Organization. It so hap-
pened that he had his first breakdown several years ago when I
was with him at a stake conference, and I did not know that he was
going to get well again, but the Lord blessed him and he came along
and did a wonderful work after that time.
I also wish to mention Sister Augusta Grant. She has always
been here when it was possible for her to do so. It is not possible
for her to be out of the house and I am sure we all remember her as
one of the lovely souls who have given cheer wherever they have
gone. She is way past ninety years of age and I presume we might
expect she would not have much strength at that age.
The Tabernacle Choir will now sing "Jesus, Name of Wondrous
ELDER ALMA SONNE
135
Love," after which Elder Alma Sonne, one of the Assistants to the
Twelve will address us.
Singing by the choir "Jesus, Name of Wondrous Love."
ELDER ALMA SONNE
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve Apostles
My brethren and sisters, I have been full of anxiety during
all the sessions of this conference. It has been said that everything
comes to him who waits. I have been waiting and waiting, and here
I stand well-nigh exhausted. It reminds me of a young man who
stood before his fellow missionaries over in Norway to bear his
testimony for the first time. He said, "I am told when you are weak,
you are strong; but when I am weak, I'm just weak."
Expansion of Church
I rejoice with you in the growth and expansion of the Church, in
the marvelous progress which it has made since it was organized in
the year 1830. 1 am proud of the achievements of the men and women
who first planted their feet in these Rocky Mountains and laid the
foundation for all we have and are. I am also proud of the men
and women who built the great city of Nauvoo and erected there
a temple of the Lord. I am equally proud of those who built the Kirt-
land Temple in times of great hardship and adversity. I rejoice in the
success which has attended the Latter-day Saints in this dispensation,
and particularly in the success of the great missionary enterprise
which is going forward in the world. I tell you the opposition is
crumbling, and the Lord's work is going forward. Never before have
we had the friendly reception which we are receiving today in all
the nations of Europe. Our message is being listened to by people
everywhere, and the Lord is preparing the hearts of men and women
for the gospel message; and so I view the situation throughout with
optimism and delight, so far as the Church is concerned.
World Attitude Changing
Just before leaving London, I purchased a book. Its author is
Dr. Ernest William Barnes, the famous Bishop of Birmingham,
England. I did not get time to read the book as thoroughly and
carefully as I should have done, but I noticed as I scanned through
its pages the learned man called attention to this one thing, namely
that infant baptism was unknown in the days of Jesus Christ and
his Apostles. In another place, he quoted the words of Paul, the
Apostle:
Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead
rise not at all? Why are they then baptized for the dead? (I Cor. 15:29.)
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Third Day
He then concluded that there can be no question but that the
early Christians were baptized for their dead relatives and friends.
Why is the attitude of the world changing respecting these doctrines?
Because, brethren and sisters, the endeavors of the humble men and
women who have gone forth as missionaries have been eminently suc-
cessful, and people in all the walks of life are reading our literature.
About a year ago I rode on the train from northern England to
London. When we came to the city of Darlington, the door to our
compartment opened, and a minister of the Church of England
entered. He looked us over rather carefully and finally said, "I am
curious to know why you Americans should come from a land of
plenty to a land of scarcity."
My companion, a young missionary, who was always eager for
a gospel conversation, turned to him and replied, "We are mission-
aries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," and then
with characteristic bluntness, "commonly called Mormons."
The minister was not shocked. I think perhaps he had surmised
who we were. The young missionary, true to form in all respects,
reached into his pocket and produced a little card on which were
printed the Articles of Faith. The minister read the articles very
carefully and handed them back to the missionary with the remark,
"I can believe most of these fine declarations of faith." And then
good naturedly, "Of course, I am not prepared to believe that Zion
is to be built upon the American continent." But he went on to talk
about these thirteen Articles of Faith and referred to them as "a
great religious document."
I have always said, and I now repeat it, there is something more
than man's genius back of these thirteen Articles of Faith. How could
anyone devise a better introduction to a gospel conversation for
our missionaries? These articles are not antagonistic. One follows the
other in proper sequence. They are sound and scriptural and have
a strong appeal to those who are familiar with the Holy Bible. They
are neither dogmatic nor unfriendly. The Prophet showed great
wisdom, it seems to me, and a rare insight into human nature, when
he used the words, "we believe," in presenting this powerful message
to the world. Is it any wonder that they have been translated into so
many languages? They are not only well-stated, but they are also
well-selected from all the beliefs of the Latter-day Saints. They have
stood the test of one hundred years, during which time they have
been analyzed and scrutinized by thousands of investigators. Not a
single alteration has been necessary. These declarations are an im-
portant part of the Prophet's literary and scriptural productions.
They are neither threadbare nor obsolete.
Articles of Faith
Reaction to Tracts
When our minister had finally finished reading them, my mis-
ELDER ALMA SONNE
137
sionary companion handed him another of our tracts. It was the
one entitled "What Is Mormonism?" written years ago by Elder
John A. Widtsoe. He read it from beginning to end. It was much
longer. It took him an hour to read it. He was equally complimentary
when he returned it to us. "It is one of the best religious papers I
have read," he said. Then my companion did a bold thing. He reached
into his brief case and took from it another tract called Joseph Smith
Tells His Own Story. Our friend read it, but the expression on his
face changed. His attitude was different. His friendliness disappeared.
He handed it back without comment except to say, "The answer to
that gospel tract is either 'yes' or 'no.' " And I believe he was right.
There is no middle ground upon which you can consider the claims
of Joseph Smith. He was either prophet or fraud, for he did his
work like one called of God.
Explanation of Joseph Smith
I also picked up in England another book, written by Dr. James
Black of Edinburgh, Scotland. He was a prominent clergyman in
the Church of England in Edinburgh. He wrote numerous articles
against the Latter-day Saints over a period of fifteen or twenty years.
These articles were bitter and were directed primarily against the
leaders of the Church and against the missionaries who were then
in England. One chapter in his book is devoted to the Mormons in
Utah, and in it the reverend gentleman made a confession that he
has failed after years of study to understand Joseph Smith. Said he
in his statement:
The real problem in Mormonism is how an ill-educated man like
Joseph Smith could have invented an elaborate system of rules and ideas
with many historical references, ingenious speculations and imaginative
flights, and moreover, how he could have expounded them in a style of
writing apparently foreign to his ordinary speech and range of culture.
He goes on:
On the other hand, the charge of his enemies that the whole system
is merely an invention and a fraud does not touch the problem, for this
charge does not explain and cannot explain how such an ill-educated man
could produce such an elaborate system. This is a bigger problem than
most people imagine. It requires an exceedingly able scholar to foist a
highly wrought-out fraud to last for over a century upon the public.
Who will explain Joseph Smith? Is there any explanation of
this great prophet of the latter days? Only one, brethren and sisters,
and that is the one which he himself gave. No one will explain this
prophet of the nineteenth century except those who accept him as a
prophet of God.
May the Lord bless this great work which has been established
upon the earth in the last days. May he bless his servants and hand-
maidens who are going forth in the world to present this gospel of
salvation, and may we live so that our lives may shine like a beacon
138 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October 1 Third Day
light to lead the world towards the truth, I pray in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen.
President George Albert Smith:
We have just heard from Elder Alma Sonne, of the Assistants
to the Twelve. President Richard L. Evans of the First Council of
Seventy, will now address us, and following him Elder Ezra Taft
Benson, of the Council of the Twelve. President Evans is a man
whose voice is heard more than that of any other man in the country.
ELDER RICHARD L. EVANS
Of the First Council of Seventy
I am sure that no one knows as well as I know how much I
need help as I face this congregation here and those who may be
listening and looking on the air, and I earnestly hope that I may
have it.
I have jotted down from time to time mentally or actually, these
past three days, things that I think it might have been well for me
to have said at this conference, and I have repeatedly scratched
them out as others have said them. They make a rather long list.
I heard some weeks ago a set of figures presented by Brother
A. Z. Richards, which I felt deserved wider circulation as a point
of historical perspective. I should like to extract a few of these fig-
ures from a longer list:
Figures Quoted
When Joseph Smith was born, the population of the United
States was about one-half the present population of California.
In 1820, the population of the entire United States was about
the population of New York City today.
In 1830, when the Church was organized, New York City was
about one-third larger than Salt Lake City is today.
In 1837, when our missionaries first went to Great Britain,
New York City was smaller than Denver is today.
In 1847, there were only two United States cities larger than
Salt Lake City today; they were New York and Manhattan, both
of which are now part of the present greater New York.
When Martin Harris went to New York with the Book of
Mormon characters, New York City was only slightly larger than
Salt Lake City is today.
Before Nauvoo was abandoned by our people, Washington,
D. C, was about the same size as Nauvoo, but Nauvoo had been
only three or four years in the making while Washington, D. C.
had been designated as the seat of national government more than
a half-century before that time.
ELDER RICHARD L. EVANS 139
I think these latter figures, and others which might be pre-
sented here, bring to us with some considerable force the kind of
people that our pioneer forefathers were — people of great courage
and conviction. I think we can see from these figures, too, some-
thing of the basis of the concern of some of their neighbors — with
all of the social, religious, political, and economic implications in-
herent in growth of this people, and the vigor and purpose they
displayed in rising repeatedly from their poverty.
Two more figures I think may be of interest to you: In 1850,
the population of Utah has been recorded in official records as being
about 1 1,380. Three years later our people started building the mag-
nificent temple which now stands to the east of us.
Men of Courage and Faith
In 1860, the population of this state has been recorded as being
about 40,273. Three years later than that they began to build the
Tabernacle in which we meet today, which, when it was projected,
probably would have seated about one out of every five people in
the entire state. If we were to do likewise today, proportionately,
we should have to project ourselves to the building of an auditorium
that would seat considerably more than a hundred thousand people.
Men of courage, men of faith in the future in spite of all the
uncertainties and the drivings and the depredations that they ex-
perienced, they began again and again, and rose from their poverty
again and again, to produce what we see before us and what we
are the beneficiaries of. These walls and these buildings on Temple
Square are part of the evidence of their purpose and their faith,
and I hope and earnestly believe that something of their spirit still
lingers here.
Uncertainties Today
Now times have changed, but human nature hasn't changed
very much. We face other uncertainties today, and sympathy and
appeals for faith and prayers and for encouragement to our young
people who face the uncertainties of our generation have been ex-
pressed repeatedly in this conference. I should like to add my ap-
peal for faith, for prayers, and for understanding for these young
people who live in confusion and suspense, and who wonder when
they are going to be relieved of all this uncertainty, when they can
settle down, what they can count on for the future, whether to pur-
sue their education and their preparations for professions or to give
it all up.
What can they count on? Well, I think it was Heber C. Kim-
ball or one of his associates who said that he had started all over
again seven different times and left his home and all behind him. I
hope this generation will not be faced with any such extremities,
but I do know that we must have faith in the future, and when we
see what our forefathers did with what they had, and the conditions
140 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October 1 Third Day
under which they did it, I feel sure that we can surmise something
of what might be expected of us, and of what might be accomplished
by us, in faith, in that unity of which President Clark so often
speaks, and in righteous purpose. There is much expected of us with
what we have, compared with what our pioneer fathers did with
what was theirs.
Year of Anniversaries
They did some other things also: It has been mentioned that
this is a year of anniversaries. For one thing, it is the centennial of
the University of Deseret, now the University of Utah. The second
act of the territorial legislature, as I recall, was the founding of
this educational institution. This month we also observe the seventy-
fifth anniversary of the founding of Brigham Young University. Did
the founders of these institutions have their eyes on the future?
They believed in seeking knowledge out of the best books. They
believed that "the glory of God is intelligence," and "that whatever
principle of intelligene we attain to in this life, it will rise with us
in the resurrection." (D. & C. 130:18.) And they established insti-
tutions of learning wherever they went. The pursuit of learning
was an important part of their lives.
Acceptance of Truth
I am aware today, not only of those who are facing uncertain-
ties in the armed forces, to whom our hearts and prayers go
out, but of those who are pursuing knowledge in institutions of
learning, who sometimes run into areas of confusion and seeming
conflict in their pursuits. I am grateful to belong to a Church that
has committed itself to the acceptance of all truth, that encourages
its people to pursue truth and to push farther and farther the fron-
tiers of human knowledge. And I am grateful also (and I have said
this before) that the things I don't understand don't destroy my
faith in the things that I do understand.
There is so much that men don't know that we can afford to
wait for all the answers where there seem to be areas of conflict
and confusion in the pursuit of knowledge.
Observations at Mt. Palomar
I was reading recently an article on the new telescopes lately
put into service on Mount Palomar, California — the Schmidt tele-
scope, a smaller one of rather radical design with forty-eight-inch
lens and the much larger one with a 200-inch lens. Since early
1949, so says the writer, the smaller of these two telescopes has
provided new clues on the creation of the universe," "has already
revealed hundreds of thousands of island universes and millions of
stars . . . which had never been seen before," and can see and
ELDER RICHARD L. EVANS
141
photograph "clear, undistorted distances of three hundred million
light years away or about two thousand billion-billion miles!" And
the larger telescope penetrates about a billion light years away!
"What is man that thou art mindful of him!"
And shall we say that these millions of stars that have just
been "seen" within recent months did not exist before we could see
them with the aid of these more acute instruments? I think we should
ask ourselves some of the questions that were asked of Job by the
Voice out of the whirlwind, and see how many we can answer,
when we run into some of these areas of seeming conflict. If we
were to sit down and list those things which have been discovered
even in our own generation, which were not before known, and
then think of infinity and of all that is not yet known by man, we
should be humble indeed in our small knowledge, even the most
learned among us.
Cling to Eternal Verities
I should like to say to our young people: Keep your lives well-
balanced. Pursuing any narrow field of knowledge or activity to
the exclusion of all others will reach a point of diminishing returns.
Give some of your time to the things of the spirit, and always re-
serve some of your means to the purposes of your Father in heaven.
Look broadly as well as intently, and keep your lives well-balanced
in your pursuits.
I would say today to those who are in the classroom, to farm-
ers in the field, to the laborers in factories, to men pursuing pro-
fessions, to young men in military service, to all of us in life, what-
ever the discouragements, whatever the seeming areas of conflict
and confusion, whatever the infinite area of things we don't under-
stand, cling to these eternal verities always: that God lives, that
men were made in his image, that life is purposeful, that men are
immortal. Cling to the commandments and give observance to them
and to the knowledge that it is our Father's plan and purpose to
bring immortality and eternal life to man. If we will cling to these
eternal verities in simplicity and truth and keep our lives well-
balanced in all our pursuits, we shall reach a glorious end, with
ever-growing knowledge. By all means seek knowledge out of the
best books, in all fields of thought and learning that are construc-
tive, and, if possible, it would be wonderful to push the frontiers of
knowledge beyond where they are now. But always keep lives well-
balanced and reserve some time for the things of the spirit.
Pursue Purposes of Life
Now as to this discouragement and confusion: I think the ene-
my of men's souls wouldn't care too much what means he used to
render our lives ineffective, just so long as he did render them in-
effective. I don't think he would care too much whether it was by
142 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday. October 1 Third Day
indolence or indifference or by withholding willing work, or by
doubt, or by discouragement, or by uncertainty — so long as he could
render us ineffective, it would please him. And it must be our pur-
pose to see that we pursue our purposes regardless of the things we
don't know which we hope sometime to know. It must be our pur-
pose to pursue with all earnestness every righteous purpose.
No matter how much we may be discouraged or how often we
are set back, we must begin again and again, if necessary, and
earnestly pursue the purposes of life, full of faith for the future.
Enduring to the end is exceedingly important. Pursuing the oppor-
tunities and the duties of every day is exceedingly important, and
repenting while there is still time to repent is also exceedingly im-
portant.
Prayer For Youth
I hope that we may set our lives in order, and that our Father
will bless these young people of ours, whether they be called to the
service of their country or whatever in righteousness they may be
called upon to do, and give them strength and faith, and let them
be of good courage, and help them to keep their lives well-balanced
and always to keep their feet firmly on solid rock. May he bless all
of us with all our problems, with our families, with our professions,
with our work, and with all that is ours to undertake in life.
I wish to express to you the conviction in my soul as to the
reality of those things which have been spoken of here in this con-
ference, that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that the gospel has
been restored, that it has within it the answers to the problems that
beset this generation, and the only answers to permanent peace. May
we pursue it in unity and with righteous purpose, ever keeping the
commandments and bringing our young people with us, full of faith,
understanding, and courage. I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus
Christ. Amen.
ELDER EZRA TAFT BENSON
Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles
I come to you, my brethren and sisters, as we approach the
close of this glorious conference, in a spirit of fasting and prayer,
in the hope that the Lord will see fit to sustain me during the few
moments I stand before you. As I have been contemplating with
anxiety this sobering experience, I have had reason to thank the
Lord many times for his blessings.
Support of Family
While I was sitting alone in a room at my home following the
morning session today, one of my boys came into the room and said,
"Dad, I've observed you've been fasting and praying a good deal
ELDER EZRA TAFT BENSON
143
during this conference. I just wanted to come in to tell you that I
have been doing the same. The Lord bless you."
As I left the room, I was met by my good wife, ever loyal and
devoted, who said, "The younger children have suggested that it
might be well if we kneel in family prayer." Then she added, "We
had prayer this morning, but they'd like to join with you in prayer
now." I am grateful, my brothers and sisters, for the support of our
families.
Gratitude For Brethren
I am grateful for the spirit of this great latter-day work. I am
grateful for my brethren among whom I labor — for their support,
their confidence, and their faith. My heart has responded to every
message given at this conference and every testimony that has been
borne.
My soul echoed the sentiments expressed in behalf of our great
leader, President George F. Richards. I loved him almost as a son
loves a father. I recall vividly standing in his presence — alone with
him in his office — just before I left for the shores of war-torn Europe.
I recall his last words of counsel. I shall never forget them and the
sweet embrace which he gave me as I was about to leave on that
emergency mission under the direction of the First Presidency.
I was happy to hear the words spoken regarding my good friend
and brother, Frank Evans, whom I have loved many years and
who was not only loved in the Church but also was loved by the
people throughout rural America.
I am happy, my brethren and sisters, in the appointment of
Brother Stapley to our Council, and I'd like to say to him, and I'm
sure I echo the feeling of all of my associates, that he will see and
feel and witness a love that is not excelled among men anywhere
in the world as he sits in the Council of the First Presidency and
the Quorum of the Twelve. I am grateful for these rich blessings.
I am thrilled, my brethren and sisters, with the sweet summary
of the conference given by Brother Lee this morning and particularly
with his testimony. I thank God that he has implanted in the hearts
of men — strong men, good men — a burning testimony of the divinity
of this great latter-day work.
Spirit of Brotherhood
There is a real spirit of brotherhood and fellowship in the
Church. Its a very powerful thing, somewhat intangible, but very
real. I feel it, as do my associates, as we travel throughout the stakes
and wards of Zion and throughout the missions of the earth. It mat-
ters not where we go. We may meet in a group with the priesthood,
in one of the stakes, or out in one of the missions, but there is always
that feeling of fellowship and brotherhood. It is one of the sweet
things in connection with membership in the Church and kingdom
144 GENERAL CONFERENCE
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of God. I have felt it way up in Alaska as I met with our brethren
and sisters there. I felt it far up in East Prussia, throughout the mis-
sions of Europe, down in Mexico, in some of the islands of the sea,
and throughout this land of Zion. It is very real. Oh, I know, my
brethren and sisters, it isn't what it should be; it isn't what it could
be; it isn't what the Lord would have it be, but nevertheless, there
is nothing like it in all the world. It is one of the marks of the divinity
of this great latter-day work, and I rejoice in it. The most important
thing of all, to me, is the spirit of this great work in which we are
engaged. It is that spirit which brings to our souls a conviction of
the divinity of this work. One cannot fully explain it, and yet it is
very powerful and very real.
Spiritual Uplift Experienced
One of my non-Mormon friends who passed away only a few
days ago, who was rather prominently known, who wrote for national
magazines, and was chairman of the board of trustees of one of our
great universities, some months ago came to this city to address a
meeting of dairymen, most of whom were members of the Church.
After the meeting was over, he came up to my home for the purpose
of a visit and a renewal of friendship. As I drove him back to the
hotel that night, he turned to me, after being quiet for several mo-
ments, and said, "I don't know what it is, but each time I come among
your people I experience something that I never experience any-
where else in the world. It's an intangible thing, but it's very real."
He added, "I've tried to analize it; I've tried to describe it; but the
best thing I can do is to say that every time I come among your
people, I get a spiritual uplift. What is it that gives me that feeling
which I get nowhere else?"
Brethren and sisters, what is it? You feel it. We feel it in these
great conferences of the Church. We feel it out in the stakes of
Zion. We feel it in little branch meetings or in meetings with mis-
sionaries in the far parts of the earth. It's a sweet thing. It's a price-
less thing. It is a mark of the divinity of this great work in which we
are engaged.
I recall while living in the East some years ago, I invited one of
my good friends, not a member of the Church, to attend our sacra-
ment meeting. He promised that he would sometime. Weeks went by;
I met him on the street one day following a Rotary luncheon, and he
said, "I was up to your meeting last Sunday night, but you weren't
there." I explained that I was visiting another ward, and then he said
in answer to my inquiry as to whether he enjoyed the meeting, "Yes,
I enjoyed it, especially the spirit of it, but," he said, "I wish you
would tell me one thing. Why is it that when your people come to
the end of a meeting and the benediction is said that they don't seem
to have any place to go?" He said, "That group stood up, recognizing
the meeting was over, but they just stood there and visited and visited
ELDER EZRA TAFT BENSON
145
until I thought I was never going to get out of that building. Finally,
when I got into the foyer, it was more congested than ever." Well,
that is a further evidence of this spirit — this spirit of love, this spirit
of brotherhood that is so real, my brethren and sisters, in the Church.
Impelling Force of Gospel
We witness it in our missionary activities. I recall vividly, and
it was called to my mind by the remarks of Brother Sonne this after-
noon, standing on the shores of war-torn Europe following the war
and watching the mission presidents — several of whom are here
before me this afternoon — come back to the shores of Europe. I
wondered in my heart, What is it that causes them to leave the com-
forts of their homes and come over to these war-torn lands where
there is a shortage of everything necessary for civilized living?
What is it that causes a man to sell his grocery business and come
way up into Norway on his third mission? What is it that causes a
man to sell his business down in California and go up to Sweden?
What is it that caused a man to turn over his furniture business in
Salt Lake City and come over to the shores of war-torn Holland,
where there was shortage of food, shortage of clothing, shortage
of fuel and transportation, and where there were practically no com-
forts? What is it that causes a man to leave his chair in a university
surrounded by all the comforts earned by a long life of service and
go back into war-torn France? And so on. I tell you, my brethren
and sisters, it is marvelous. There isn't anything like it anywhere.
What is it that causes our young missionaries to want to go out
and serve without any hope of material reward? I interviewed one of
them down in a California stake recently. We couldn't accept him
because he wasn't old enough. He broke down and cried. He said,
"Brother Benson, ever since I was a deacon I've wanted to go on a
mission." He stated, "The last few months my fiancee and I have
been planning my mission and what would follow, and what support
she would give while I was out in the field." And he told how his
parents had prayed that the time might come that he would be con-
sidered worthy to go out and represent the Church in the world.
Nearly six thousand of them are out in the world as we meet here
today. What is the impelling force back of it?
How did the Prophet Joseph know as a young man that men
and women would respond to the call to fill missions, to go out
into the world representing an unpopular cause, to carry this glorious
message? How did he know that the Saints, when and if they ac-
cepted the gospel, would respond to the call of gathering and come to
Zion. Yes, the spirit of this work, my brethren and sisters, is a
marvelous and a priceless thing.
Critical Period
Now during this critical period, and it is a critical period that
146 GENERAL CONFERENCE
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we are passing through, I hope that we will keep ever burning in our
hearts the spirit of this great work which we represent. If we do so,
we'll have no anxiety; we'll have no fear; we'll not worry about
the future because the Lord has given us the assurance that if we
live righteously, if we keep his commandments, if we humble our-
selves before him, all will be well. I turn to two passages of scripture
today which I'd like to read:
... Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dis-
mayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
(Joshua 1:9.)
This was the Lord's admonition to his son, Joshua, encouraging
him to trust in God. Joshua answered that admonition in counsel to
his people in these words:
. . . choose you this day whom ye will serve; . . . but as for me and
my house, we will serve the Lord. (Ibid., 24:15.)
Essentials for Security
Embodied in these two passages of scripture are the two prin-
cipal essentials for security and peace: first, trust in God; and second,
a determination to keep the commandments, to serve the Lord, to
do that which is right. Latter-day Saints who live according to
these two admonitions — trust in God and keep the commandments —
have nothing to fear.
The Lord has made it very clear in the revelations that even
though times become perilous, even though we be surrounded by
temptation and sin, even though there be a feeling of insecurity,
even though men's hearts may fail them and anxiety fill their souls,
if we only trust in God and keep his commandments we need have
no fear.
In modern revelation the Lord has pointed this out very clearly.
Even before the Church was organized, when there were only a hand-
ful of people following the leadership of the boy Prophet, the Lord
said to his Saints,
Therefore, fear not, little flock; do good; let earth and hell combine
against you, for if ye are built upon my rock, they cannot prevail. . . .
Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not. (D. & C. 6:34,
36.)
He has also said,
... it is my purpose to provide for my saints, for all things are mine.
(Ibid., 104:15.)
Real Dedication Required
My brethren and sisters, it is not going to be enough just passive-
ly to accept the teachings, standards, and ideals of the Church. It will
require real activity, real dedication to the principles of righteousness
ELDER EZRA TAFT BENSON
147
if we are to face the future unafraid. But if we have the courage,
sound judgment, and the faith so to do, then no matter what happens
we will be able to face any situation with courage and with faith and
with the assurance that God will sustain us. I know this to be true,
my brethren and sisters. I know that now is the time probably more
than any other time in our lives to live the gospel. We should not be
lulled away into a false security as Nephi said many would be in the
last days. We should not be pacified and feel in our hearts that we
can sin a little, that we can attend to our meetings part of the time,
that we can pay a token tithing, that we can live the gospel when
it is convenient, and all will be well. We must not be "at ease in
Zion" and say, "Zion prospereth, all is well." But we must live the
gospel plan every day of our lives in its fulness. Therein is safety.
Therein will come a satisfaction which comes from righteous living
which will enter our hearts, give us the courage and the strength
that we need. There is no security in unrighteousness. The sinful
always live in despair.
Need for Righteousness
We have a great mission. We must be prepared, both young and
old. We must stand as a leaven among the nations, true to the prin-
ciples of righteousness.
We need to be humble. We need to be grateful. We need as
families to kneel in family prayer, night and morning. Just a few
words added to the blessing on the food, which is becoming the
custom in some parts, is not enough. We need to get onto our knees
in prayer and gratitude, as Alma admonished. (See Alma 34.) We
need the spirit of reverence in our houses of worship referred to by
President McKay in his beautiful address last night at Priesthood
meeting. We need to keep the Sabbath day holy. We need to close
our businesses on Sunday, and as Latter-day Saints, refrain from
making purchases on the Sabbath except in cases of emergency.
We need to refrain from going to moving pictures on the Sabbath,
and if we are operating show houses, we should close them on Sun-
day. We should not seek pleasure in any form on the Sabbath day.
We should stand firm in opposition to Sunday baseball and other
amusements regardless of what much of the Christian world may do.
We should oppose gambling in all of its forms including the pari-
mutuel betting at horse races referred to so effectively by Brother
Moyle. We should refrain from the habit of card playing against
which we have been counseled by the leaders of the Church. We
should stand united in opposition to the wider distribution and use
of alcohol and other things declared by the Lord to be harmful.
Commandments to Observe
If we keep the commandments, we will refrain from joining
secret orders and lodges. Our first allegiance will be to the Church
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and the priesthood quorums. We will attend our meetings. We will
take our families with us to the sacrament meeting and sit with them
and worship with them. If we keep the commandments, we will pay
our tithes and offerings, our fast offerings, and our welfare contri-
butions. We will respond to the calls in the Church, and we will
not resign from office when called under the authority of the Holy
Priesthood. We will follow the counsel of the leadership of the
Church and call our families together periodically in home evenings
in order that the home might be safeguarded and the solidarity of the
family increased. We will read the scriptures in our homes as the Lord
has admonished us. We will not violate the sacred covenants we have
taken upon ourselves in the waters of baptism and in the temples
of the Lord, nor will we desecrate or cast to one side the garments
of the Holy Priesthood. We will attend to our temple work. We will
become saviors on Mount Zion in very deed.
If we keep the commandments we'll be good citizens. We'll exer-
cise our right to vote. We'll follow the counsel which the Lord has
given in the revelations regarding our obligation to seek out "honest
men and wise men" (D. & C. 98:8-10) who will stand for principle,
men who will put principle ahead of political expediency. We will
seek men of faith who believe the Constitution was inspired and that
this nation has a spiritual foundation. If we are living the gospel,
we will feel in our hearts that the First Presidency of the Church not
only have the right, but are also duty bound under heaven to give
counsel on any subject which affects the temporal or spiritual wel-
fare of the Latter-day Saints, regardless of whether or not some men
may think such counsel may have political implications.
We must stand firm for that which we know to be right, my
brothers and sisters, and uphold these men who have been sustained
as our leaders in modern Israel. All this we will do, and more, if
we live the gospel. We will keep ourselves clean and unspotted from
the world. We will live lives of purity. We will be true to our
wives and families. We will live according to the gospel plan.
May God bless us, my brothers and sisters, that we may trust in
God and keep his commandments. That is all the Lord expects of us.
Joy and happiness will enter our hearts as we do so. It is the wicked
who flee when no man pursueth. The righteous are bold as a lion.
People who live righteously have nothing to fear. In spite of the
turmoil, anxiety, and insecurity which may seem to be everywhere,
we will be able to stand erect and go forward with courage and
faith. We must not compromise with evil. "They enslave their child-
ren's children who make compromise with sin."
God bless us to live the gospel, to be grateful for all that we
Good Citizenship
Blessing
BISHOP LEGRAND RICHARDS 149
have and are, and for all that we enjoy, in this the kingdom of God,
I humbly pray, and I bear fervent testimony to you to the truth of
the words that have been spoken at this conference, in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen.
President George Albert Smith:
Brother Ezra Taft Benson, of the Council of the Twelve, has
just addressed us and we will now join the Tabernacle Choir in
singing "High On The Mountain Top," conducted by Elder Richard
P. Condie.
After the singing we will hear from Bishop LeGrand Richards,
Presiding Bishop of the Church, and one of the members of the
family of the man about whom so many have spoken so affection-
ately here today, President George F. Richards.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn "High On The
Mountain Top."
BISHOP LEGRAND RICHARDS
Presiding Bishop
My brothers and sisters, from the depths of my soul I thank the
Lord for the privilege of being here to worship with you in the ses-
sions of this conference. I think of the words of the Master when he
was tempted to turn the stone into bread to prove that he was the
Son of God. He replied, "It is written, Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."
(Matt. 4:4.) And I am sure we have been fed the bread of life
eternal during the sessions of this conference.
Appreciation of Father
President Smith has already indicated that I am a son of
George F. Richards. I would like to take this occasion, representing
his family, to express appreciation to those who have paid tribute to
Father during the sessions of this conference and the many, many
friends who have written their tributes since Father's passing away.
Many have said that they thought he was one of the finest men that
ever lived. As his son, I would like to tell you that I don't know
of any man that I think lived nearer the Lord than my father. When
he spoke in prayer, he just talked to the Lord. And when he made
a promise to me, it was just the same as if the Lord had made it.
He has left us a great heritage and a great responsibility, and I hope
his posterity will not fail him.
I should like also to mention Brother Roscoe Eardley. Brother
Roscoe and I had much in common. We each filled two missions in
Holland; we each presided over that mission. Roscoe was a great
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Sunday. October J Third Day
missionary, and the Dutch people loved him. He loved the Church,
and he was loyal to it in every way. I also worked side by side with
Brother Frank Evans in the Church offices, and I think he was one of
the grandest men it has ever been my privilege to know. And I thank
God for the presence of Brother Thomas E. McKay in this meeting.
We have been praying for you, Brother McKay, for months, and we
thank the Lord that you are here to worship with us on this occasion.
Faith Commended
While riding to my conference a week ago last Saturday, one of
my companions said, "Bishop, what do the Saints need to be told
more than anything else?" I answered, "The one thing they ought to
be told is how wonderful they are in the payment of their tithes
and their offerings, in helping to build meetinghouses, in sending
their boys into the mission field, in helping with the great welfare
program of the Church, in the buying of projects and helping with
the budget, in maintaining their wards, and in the other things they
have been asked to help with, such as the Primary Children's hospital,
the Relief Society building, and the BYU fieldhouse." I tell you, my
heart goes out in admiration, in thanksgiving to God for the faith of
the Latter-day Saints, and I love them. For over twelve years now
I have had to do with the financial affairs of this Church, and we
haven't passed one year that the Saints haven't paid a greater tithing
than the year before. We are already away ahead this year over last
year. I don't think they are making undue sacrifices, because of the
faith I have that every effort they put forth in the building up of the
kingdom of God shall be in the words of the prophet, as bread cast
upon the water which after many days shall return.
When I was a boy, my father said, "My son, there is no organi-
zation or corporation or institution in this world that will pay you as
great dividends on the investment of your time and your talents and
your means as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."
After nearly fifty years since my father made me that promise, I stand
before you to say that I have seen it verified in the lives of the
Latter-day Saints and the lives of my own family, and of my own
loved ones. And so I say, God bless the Saints for their faith and
for their integrity.
Sacrifices of Saints
Brother Benson has just talked of the marvelous sacrifices being
made to carry on the great missionary work of the Church; then
there is the building of meetinghouses. We have about four hundred
of them in the course of construction at the present time, and the way
the Saints sacrifice in order to raise their portion of the money, to
me, is a marvelous thing. My daughter called me a few nights ago
after I had retired. She said, "Daddy, I was afraid you were in bed,
but we just came from our ward, and we raised tonight fifteen thou-
BISHOP LEGRAND RICHARDS 151
sand dollars to make the final payment on our meetinghouse." And
she added, "To cap the climax, the bishop gave another thousand."
I say God bless the Saints and leaders like that.
This same daughter was sent out to collect money. She went into
the home of one student. He'd given his part, but they had to have
more. The building cost more than they had anticipated, He said,
"Well, now, I don't know where I can get it tonight, but give me a
few days; come back again." He gathered up his books that he had
finished using at school and took them to the university and sold them
to get money to pay another contribution on the meetinghouse.
Sister Richards and I were in Idaho a few weeks ago to dedicate
a meetinghouse. When we heard the stories of those Saints, how they
had sacrificed, we were thrilled. One good sister told how she had
taken her cow and had it killed and cut up, and had stood on the
street corner of the little town selling beef sandwiches in order to
raise her portion for that meetinghouse. There isn't time to tell you
more of these stories. But I do want to say that just as long as the
Lord will keep putting that kind of faith in the hearts of the Latter-
day Saints, you just can't stop the kingdom from growing. No power
under heaven can do it. And I thank God for your faith.
Spirit of Darkness
Now, as I love the Saints for their faithfulness, I also feel
remorse and sorrow for those who fail to have that kind of faith, for
those who are not willing to do their part, for those who have dis-
continued attending their meetings. Brigham Young said that when
we fail to attend our sacrament meetings and observe our prayers,
the Spirit of the Lord will withdraw himself, and a spirit of darkness
will come over us. Now there are a great many people in our midst
who have ceased attending their meetings, and who do not observe
their prayers. Some of them are near to us, some of them are dear to
us, but the Lord does withdraw his Spirit. Just within the last week
I had a woman in my office who told me how her husband had quit
doing his duty and how the Lord had withdrawn his Spirit. She said,
"Sometimes I think he is almost possessed of the devil." Well, the
Lord knew that we could not be disobedient to his commandments and
still enjoy his Spirit. I want to read the twelfth verse of the ninety-
fifth section of the Doctrine and Covenants.
If you keep not my commandments, the love of the Father shall not
continue with you, therefore, you shall walk in darkness.
And when people walk in darkness, they cannot love the breth-
ren; they cannot love the Lord; they cannot love the people; they can-
not love this great Latter-day cause, the greatest movement the world
has ever known, aside from the great atonement of the Lord and
Savior, Jesus Christ. At least that is my appraisal of it. I think that
is what the Lord had in mind when he said in a revelation to the
Prophet Joseph Smith:
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Sunday, October 1 Third Day
But behold, verily I say unto you, that there are many who have
been ordained among you, whom I have called but few of them are
chosen.
They who are not chosen have sinned a very grevious sin, in that
they are walking in darkness at noon-day. (D. & C. 95:5-6.)
The noonday is the brightest period of the day, and with all
this glorious truth about us, some walk in darkness.
Lord's Spirit Withdrawn
When the Lord has withdrawn his Spirit, and one walks in dark-
ness, he says: "Well, I'm not religious."
We represent the adult group of the Aaronic Priesthood, many
of whom are indifferent. One good brother wrote in and inquired:
"How can a man effect a complete annihilation of his soul and his
body?" Why, because he has not observed the commandments of
God. He was not attending his meetings. He was not praying; so the
Spirit of the Lord withdrew and left him walking in darkness; and
when a man walks in darkness, he has little hope to look forward to.
When a man says he is not religious, does he mean that he be-
lieves that when he dies that will end it all? In the words of the
Savior, speaking of the days of Noah, he said: "They shall say,
come, let us eat, drink, and make merry, for tomorrow we die."
Does it mean that he believes that will end it all? Paul said that
"If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most
miserable." (I Cor. 15:19.) And the Savior said,
For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and
lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
(Mark 8:36-37.)
Oh, I tell you, brothers and sisters, the glorious gospel that we
have is worth more than all the wealth in the world.
Meaning of Religion
When a man says he is not religious, does he mean that he
would not be interested if religion could tell him where he came from,
why he is here, and where he is going? Does he mean that he is not
interested in these things, when he says he is not religious? Suppose
you had never seen your own father, and yet you had had communi-
cations from him from Europe or elsewhere, and he had been kind
to you, but conditions hadn't been such that you could visit him.
Wouldn't you want to see your own father? Wouldn't you some
day want to be acquainted with him and enjoy his association?
Paul tells us that
... we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave
them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the
Father of spirits, and live? (Heb. 12:9.)
BISHOP LEGRAND RICHARDS 153
When religion can teach us that we are the very offspring of
God the Eternal Father, how could any of us not look forward long-
ingly to the day when he will take us by the hand and say. "... Well
done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over
a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into
the joy of thy lord." (Matt. 25:21.)
Added Upon
If what we read in the Pearl of Great Price is true, that those
who were faithful in keeping their first estate should be added upon,
(and there isn't time to discuss how marvelously those who have
kept their first estate have been added upon) but that more blessed
is he who keeps his second estate, for he shall be added upon forever
and forever, does a man mean when he says, "I am not religious," that
he would not like to be added upon forever and forever? There is
an eternal life, and we have that right awaiting us if we will just
live for it.
Does a man mean, when he says he is not religious, that he
does not care whether his wife and his children belong to him
throughout the countless ages of eternity, that they mean nothing
to him?
I was in the Arizona Temple not so long ago. We spent a day
there, and the Primary teachers of one of the wards brought their
children to do baptismal work for the dead. While the children
were doing this work, we held a testimony meeting with the teachers,
and in that meeting sister after sister stood up (their husbands were
not active in the Church), and with tears in their eyes, they bore
their testimonies and said that the greatest desire of their hearts was
for the day to come when their husbands could take them into the
temple of God and be sealed to them for time and all eternity, that
they might have claim on them and their children.
Do we mean when we say we are not religious that we do not
care anything about such matters?
The Rich Man and Lazarus
How are we going to find out these things? You remember the
story of the rich man and Lazarus, how Lazarus died and was re-
ceived into Abraham's bosom and the rich man into torment. He called
to father Abraham and said: "Have mercy on me, and send Lazarus,
that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue;
for I am tormented in this flame." Father Abraham explained that
there was a gulf between them. Then the rich man's thoughts turned
to his five brothers who were still upon the earth, and he said, "I pray
thee therefore, Father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's
house:
"For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest
they also come into this place of torment."
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Abraham saith unto him, "They have Moses and the prophets;
let them hear them."
And the rich man said: "Nay, Father Abraham: but if one
went unto them from the dead, they will repent."
Father Abraham said: "If they hear not Moses and the proph-
ets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead."
(See Luke 16:22-31.)
I pray that God will put it into the hearts of our loved ones and
those of the Saints of Zion who are not as faithful as they should
be, who do not think they are religious, that they will realize that
we do not only have Moses and the prophets, but also the living
prophets of God who are sent to show us the way; that they will
listen unto them. When I think of all the Lord has revealed in the
establishment of his Church and kingdom on the earth in these
later days, to me it is all Isaiah described it to be when he said the
Lord would proceed to do a marvelous work and a wonder, and the
wisdom of their wise men should perish, and the understanding of
their prudent men should be hid. God help us to touch the hearts
of those who cannot see and who are walking in darkness, and God
bless you faithful Latter-day Saints for your integrity and your
devotion to his great cause, I humbly pray in the name of the Lord,
Jesus Christ. Amen.
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH
You have just listened to the Presiding Bishop of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, LeGrand Richards, and while he
has been talking, I have been thinking of this great audience. Refer-
ence has been made repeatedly to missionary work. We have been
told that we have nearly six thousand missionaries out in the world
today. Of course they are coming and going all the time. For a small
church, such as we are, having membership a little more than a
million, approximately six thousand missionaries is a marvelous
record. As I sit here looking at the faces of the men and women that
I know here, and I can see people here from all over, it came into
my mind to ask the question: How many of you have filled a two-year
or longer mission during your lifetime? Raise your hands. Thank you
very much. This is a missionary Church. Sometimes people might
think, from the way we refer to finance, that we are a bank, but we
are not. Think of the buildings that are on this block, every one
of them built many years ago. This tabernacle and the temple were
built in the very poverty of our people when they were trying to
make homes here in the valleys of these mountains. But the Lord
said, "Seek ye first," — not last — ■". . . seek ye first the kingdom of
God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added
unto you." (Matt. 6:33.)
I
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 155
Comforts and Blessings
When I travel, as I have, approximately a million miles in the
world, in many nations and places in the world, and come back here,
I do not know of any place where people have more comforts and
blessings than we do right here in this place that 103 years ago was
a desert land, with only one tree growing in this valley. My grand-
father came with the first company of pioneers. There were 143 men,
three women, and two children. After he had been here for five or
six years, one of his non-Mormon friends asked him, "President
Smith, why did you leave Nauvoo and all that fine country back there
in New York and Missouri and come out to this God-forsaken land?"
The reply of my grandfather was, "Why, we came here
willingly, because we had to."
In other words, the people, about twenty thousand of them, when
they were expelled from Illinois, had their choice. They could have
stayed there and lived with so-called Christians (I want to em-
phasize that), or they could leave and come out here and live with
the Indians. That was their choice. They preferred the Indians.
Now that was not because our people did not believe in Christianity.
I know of no people in the world who believe as firmly in the divine
mission of Jesus Christ as do the membership of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I remember I have had many
people say to me, "Why, you people do not even believe in Jesus
Christ."
I have said, "What is the matter with you? If we do not believe
in Jesus Christ, why do we call the Church, the Church of Jesus
Christ?"
"Oh, I didn't know you called it that, I thought it was called the
Mormon Church," they have replied.
Divine Mission of Jesus Christ
I remember I attended a conference in Canada once, and it so
happened that I referred in my remarks during the evening to our
faith in the divine mission of Jesus Christ, that we believed that
the Lord prepared the way for the coming of Jesus of Nazareth;
prepared Mary to be his mother and Joseph to act as his earthly
father. And then Herod, in an attempt to destroy him, sent out a
decree that the children in Bethlehem and the country raund about
who were two years old and under were to be slain, and he became
one of the greatest butchers of all time. Joseph and Mary took Jesus
and departed from the land of their birth and their home and went
down into Egypt. They returned later when that wicked king had
died, and the boy grew up in Nazareth and other places in that
section. When he was twelve years old, he went with his parents
to the temple. They were there to perform services in the temple
as was customary with those good Hebrew people in those days.
When Joseph and Mary started home, they missed the boy. They
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Third Day
returned to Jerusalem and found him reasoning with the wise men
in the temple. When he was reproached by his parents for causing
them such anxiety, his answer was, "... wist ye not that I must be
about my Father's business?" (Luke 2:49.) Remember he was only
twelve years old.
When Jesus became a man, he went to the River Jordan where
John was baptizing "because there was much water there," and he
needed more than a teacup or a basin full — Jesus of Nazareth, who
was to become the Savior of the world, went to John and applied
for baptism, and John recognizing him as an unusual character,
said, "... I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to
"And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now:
for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered
him." (Matt. 3:14-15.) And Jesus of Nazareth went down into the
water and was baptized by John, and when he came up out of the
water, the Holy Ghost came and descended upon him in the form
of a dove.
And a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, in
whom I am well pleased." (Ibid., 3:17.) Could there be anything
more definite than that? Our wonderful Bible contains all that infor-
mation and much more, of course. When people say or think that we
do not believe in the divine mission of Jesus Christ, let them know that
we believe all that the Bible teaches in reference to him. We believe
the story of how he organized his people and taught them, and how
eventually, at the insistence of his own people, he was crucified
by the representatives of the Roman government; not for any wrong
he had done, but because he was too good to live among that people.
We believe all that. But that was not the end. The Bible tells
us that he had been taken down from the cross where he had been
crucified and placed in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. After three
days, when the women went to the tomb with spices and other things
to prepare his body for burial as was customary, they found that
the tomb was empty. They began looking around. Mary was standing
near the sepulchre weeping when she saw someone who she
thought was the gardener. She asked where Jesus was, and He
said, "Mary," and she recognized his voice. I suppose Mary
would have embraced him, but he said, "Touch me not; for I
am not yet ascended to my Father" (John 20:17) — that was
three days after his crucifixion — but to go and tell his brethren, and
gave her other instructions.
Not very long after that, his disciples were gathered together
in a room; because of their fear of their enemies, the door was
closed. All at once he materalized in that room — he did not have to
wait for a door or a window to open. Thomas, who had not been
me?
> »
The Resurrection
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 157
present at the time of the previous appearance of Jesus, had been
told by the disciples. Realizing that there was some doubt in the
mind of Thomas, Jesus said, ". . . Reach hither thy finger, and behold
my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side."
{Ibid.. 20:27.)
And when Thomas had done it, he cried out, "My Lord and
my God." (Ibid., 20:28.) He identified the body as the one he
had seen on the cross. And then the Savior said. "Thomas, because
thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have
not seen, and yet have believed." (Ibid., 20:29.) But that was not
the end. He said to his disciples, "And other sheep I have, which are
not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my
voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd." (Ibid., 10:16.)
Visit to Other Sheep
What did he mean? We do not know from the Bible, but there is
another glorious record, the history of the ancestors of the American
Indians, another scripture, the Book of Mormon, and in this scripture
is recorded how he fulfilled that promise of going to his other sheep.
At the time of his crucifixion this earth was rent, and the mountains
were made valleys, the valleys were made mountains, and buildings
were destroyed, and many of the people who lived on the land lost
their lives. They had been looking for the time when the Savior
should come, for Samuel, the Lamanite prophet, had told them
about it and all that would occur. They were gathered around
the temple; and all at once they heard a voice, but they did not
understand it. And they heard it a second time; and still they could
not tell where it came from. And then they heard it the third time,
and this time they understood, and looking up, saw the heavens open,
and a glorified Being came down and stood among them. Had there
been any doubt in their minds as to who it was, he dispelled it, be-
cause he said, "Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testi-
fied shall come into the world." ( III Nephi 11:10.)
Brethren and sisters, we have all the information that our Christ-
ian brothers and sisters do with regard to the life of the Savior in
the Bible, and in addition to that, we have the story of his coming
to the people on this western hemisphere, as recorded in the Book of
Mormon. And when he came among them, he talked to them as he
had to those in the old world. When he was ready to leave them,
he blessed them, he healed their sick and took their children up in
his arms and wept over them. And after being with them two or three
days, coming and going, they saw him ascend into heaven.
Experiences of Joseph Smith
In 1820 Joseph Smith, the boy prophet not yet fifteen years of
age, seeking to know what Church he should join because of the
confusion in his neighborhood — his mother insisted he belong to one
158
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Sunday. October 1 Third Day
church and his father to another — went out in the woods to pray.
This boy had read in the Bible, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him
ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and
it shall be given him." (James 1:5.) He went out into the woods
and put it to the test. As he knelt there, the adversary sought to
overpower him and he was stricken, but suddenly a bright light ap-
peared. Two glorified Beings were standing in the air above him in
the woods near Palmyra, New York. He saw them, and they asked
him what he wanted, and he asked which of all the churches he
should join. One of them spoke to him and said, pointing to the other,
"This is My Beloved Son, Hear Him!" (Pearl of Great Price, Joseph
Smith 2:17.) Almost the same language that was used by the Father
when Jesus came up out of the waters of baptism — "This is my be-
loved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17.) So when
Joseph the boy wanted to know what to do, he was told by the
Savior himself.
Additional Light
I say to you we not only have all that the world has with regard
to the divinity of the mission of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Bible,
but also we have the story of another book, known as the Book of
Mormon, and the account of his appearing in this western hemis-
phere, the tradition of which has been among the Indians ever since;
and we also have the story of another man who gave his life as a
witness that he knew that God lives and Jesus is the Christ. I refer
to the Prophet Joseph Smith.
My brothers and sisters, if men and women, with all the truth
that they have, would retain all the wonderful things that have been
passed on through the prophets of God, and then let us share with
them the additional information the Lord has revealed since the
Holy Bible was made accessible to the world, what a difference it
would make. I remember a very fine doctor, who was a good member
of the Jewish church in Atlanta, Georgia, and who read the Book
of Mormon. I became well-acquainted with him, and he said to me
one day, "There isn't a man living in the world today that could
write the Book of Mormon. It must be something more than the work
of man." I have known many people, who, having read it, and
prayed about it, have received a witness that it is true.
Inspiration of Almighty
What I want to emphasize is this: Not only do we have all that
is contained in these sacred records, but also when you have received
the gospel, been baptized, had the hands of the servants of the Lord
laid upon your head and received the Holy Ghost, you have a right
to the inspiration of the Almighty if you live to be worthy of it.
Ought we not to be grateful for our many blessings? What a won-
derful thing to live in a land like America and to have all the ad-
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 159
vantages that we have. I feel so grateful for my privileges in the
Church of Jesus Christ, for my companionship with the men and
women of this Church and of other churches. I am grateful to have
a host of friends in the various churches of the world, scattered in
different places. I am grateful for those friendships, but I will not
be satisfied until I can share with them some of the things which
they have not yet received. And that is the thing we must keep in
our minds; it is our responsibility to bear the word. Let us do the
things the Lord wants us to do and keep his commandments and be
worthy of the blessings that we enjoy that are superior to those of
most people in all the world.
Obedience Brings Blessings
This is the closing session of this great conference. It will be
another six months before we are again brought together in this
capacity, as far as we know now. But in that six months we do not
know what may occur. Reference has been made to the fact that
many of our boys and some of our girls are already being taken
away preparatory for another war. War is the result of sin, not
righteousness. And if we want to avoid war and avoid the responsi-
bilities that come, our duty is to keep the commandments of God, and
he has promised that if we will do that we will enjoy blessings that
we cannot enjoy in any other way.
I am happy to be with you today. We have had a wonderful
time. We are grateful to this wonderful choir that sings to the world
every Sunday, a choir that has rendered 1102 programs, broadcast
to the world. We are not depending entirely upon the nearly six
thousand missionaries. We also have the radio, and thousands of
people listen in to the program that is given each week by this won-
derful choir, an unpaid organization that is doing missionary work
for the blessings of mankind.
Now are you happy? If you are keeping the commandments of
God, I am sure you are happy. We have much to do. You have
heard something about preparing a temple at Los Angeles.
Plans and Accomplishments
The first plans have been approved so that the temple may be
constructed just as soon as the detailed plans are prepared. It will
add another temple. We are the only people in the world who know
what temples are for, and how wonderful it is that we can build a
temple without feeling the loss of the expense. We have been build-
ing temples and building meetinghouses all these years. Since the war,
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the people that be-
long to this organization, have sent 130-odd carloads of food, bed-
ding, and clothing to the people across the sea because they needed
it, and they were made a present of it. Yet our granaries are filled
today. Our root cellars are being filled now. Our little workshops
160 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October 1 Third Dag
where clothing is made and where second-hand clothing is repaired
and made desirable are filling up again, and I want to say that I do
not know of any people in the world that are more richly blessed
than we, notwithstanding our constant giving that has been referred
to here. They who give to the poor, but lend to the Lord, and he is
a wonderful paymaster.
Brethren and sisters, let us do our part. Harken to the advice
that has come to us here during these sessions of conference. This
is the Lord's house. His Spirit has been here, and we have been up-
lifted and blessed thereby. I pray that the power of our Heavenly
Father may go with you workers of this Church, you members,
wherever you go, that your homes may be the abiding place of the
spirit of our Heavenly Father, that your sons and daughters may
grow up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, that you may
love your neighbors, and that means members of the Church and
those that are not: That means all who seek to be what the Lord
would have them be. I pray that each of us may feel day by day
the assurance that so many of you have, that God lives, that Jesus
is the Christ, that Joseph Smith was a prophet of the Living God.
I know that as well as I know that I live, and I bear that witness to
you in humility, and realizing the seriousness of such a statement if
it were not true, I still bear this testimony to you in the name of
Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
President George Albert Smith:
The Tabernacle Choir will now sing "Behold, God the Lord
Passed By."
The closing prayer will be offered by President Walter Adolph
Hunzeker of the Montpelier Stake, Idaho, after which this Confer-
ence will adjourn sine die.
The Deseret Sunday School Conference will convene in this
building at 7:00 P. M. tonight. All Sunday School workers will
wish to be in attendance.
All calls that come to us will be announced at the dismissal of
this meeting over the loud speaking system on the grounds.
The choir music for today's sessions of the Conference has
been furnished by the Tabernacle Choir, with Elder J. Spencer Corn-
wall conducting and Alexander Schreiner at the organ for the morn-
ing session, and Elder Frank W. Asper at the organ for the after-
noon session.
I wish to take this occasion to thank this fine choir and the or-
ganists and the other choirs too, that have been singing for us dur-
ing the Conference. Go where you will in all the world and you will
find no such choir as the one that sings in this building accompanied
by the great organ we all think so much of.
And now again, brethren and sisters, peace, love, kindness and
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 161
the blessings of our Heavenly Father be with you henceforth and
forever, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
The Tabernacle Choir sang "Behold, God the Lord Passed By."
The benediction was offered by President Walter Adolph Hun-
zeker of the Montepelier Stake.
Conference adjourned sine die.
GENERAL PRIESTHOOD MEETING
The General Priesthood meeting of the Church convened in
the Tabernacle at 7:00 p.m., Saturday, September 30, 1950.
President George Albert Smith was present and conducted the
services.
President George Albert Smith:
There are two buildings being filled besides this. Surely Zion
is growing!
We will start our meeting by the Male Chorus of the Tabernacle
Choir, Elder J. Spencer Cornwall, director, and Elder Alexander
Schreiner at the organ, joining with the congregation in singing as
an opening song — I want you to notice the title of it — -"Do What
Is Right."
The Tabernacle Choir Male Chorus and the congregation joined
in singing the hymn, "Do What Is Right."
President James A. Criddle of the Portneuf Stake offered the
opening prayer.
The Tabernacle Choir Male Chorus sang the hymn "I Know
That My Redeemer Lives."
President George Albert Smith:
I think, brethren, that this is our largest group of men at a Priest-
hood meeting. Zion seems to be growing.
We have met tonight to wait upon the Lord. We are not here
out of curiosity and we are not here to get in out of the weather.
We are here in this comfortable mansion of our Heavenly Father
to wait upon him, and I am sure if we will exercise our faith and
prayers the Lord will bless us and we will be fed the bread of life.
Our first speaker tonight will be President David O. McKay.
162 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30
Second Day
PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
When we realize that the twelve thousand or more members of
the priesthood quorums assembled here tonight can say, each one in
his own heart, "I know that my Redeemer lives," we can sense at
least dimly the strength of this Church, for upon the priesthood rests
the structure, the entire structure of the Church of Jesus Christ.
Evidences of Progress
We have cause to be thankful that we have many evidences
today of the mervelous growth of this work. In the mission fields,
we have more missionaries than we have ever had before, nearly
six thousand, not counting the missionaries in the stakes of Zion;
tithing is greater than ever and increasing; baptisms in the field are
greater; only within the last two weeks we had reports of a hundred
and fifty baptisms in one mission in August; another, in the same
month, two hundred and sixty-three, and these are converts, not
children. The stakes and wards are increasing. More Church edi-
fices are now under construction than we have ever had before in
the history of the Church. All these are sure evidences of progress;
and this attendance tonight is another, — one of the most encourag-
ing. As President Smith has said, you are not here out of curiosity.
You are not here because of any special attraction. You are here
because you respect your calling. You honor your priesthood be-
cause of the sense of the responsibility that you carry. Each of you
who holds the priesthood carries a certain amount of responsibility
for the success of God's work. That realization, that willingness to
respond to duty, has brought together tonight, on this September
30, 1950, the largest assembly of priesthood, I believe, ever held in
the Church at a priesthood meeting.
The assembly of itself is an inspiration, especially when you
contemplate its significance, and realize that in the brotherhood of
Christ we are all one, supporting one another. It is sublime.
I pray for your sympathy, for your faith and prayers, and above
all, for the inspiration of the Lord, that what I may say may be of
worth, of interest, and contributive to the advancement of God's
work.
Need of Reverence
I have, really, on my mind but one message. I am going to say
one appeal for this vast audience of leaders. I believe there is one
great need in the Church which you presidencies of stakes, bishoprics
of wards, presidencies of quorums, and officers in auxiliaries, can
supply. I have in mind the need of more reverence in our houses of
worship, better order and discipline in our classrooms, in quorum
meetings and in auxiliary groups.
PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY
163
The more we try to cultivate the attributes of the Savior, the
stronger we become in character and in spirituality, and those are
the two great purposes of life, so to live that we may be susceptible
to the inspiration of the Holy Ghost and to his guidance.
Overcome Evil Tendencies
I do not know who it was who wrote many years ago that the
whole purpose of life might be summed up in these words: "To sub-
due matter that we might realize the ideal."
When I first read that I thought I could paraphrase it and say,
"The whole purpose of life is to bring under subjection the animal
passions, proclivities and tendencies, that we might realize the com-
panionship, always, of God's Holy Spirit." I think that is the ideal.
One chief purpose of life is to overcome evil tendencies, to govern
our appetites, to control our passions, — anger, hatred, jealousy, im-
morality. We have to overcome them; we have to subject them, con-
quer them, because God has said: "My spirit will not dwell in un-
clean tabernacles, nor will it always strive with man."
A Divine Attribute
The principle of self-control lies at the basis of reverence and
good order in classrooms. I do not know how to define reverence,
but I do know how to classify or to place it as one of the objectives
of nobility, indeed, one of the attributes of deity.
Love is the divinest attribute of the human soul. I am not so
sure but sympathy is next to it, — sympathy for the afflicted, for suf-
fering animals, for our brethren and sisters. That is a God-like virtue.
Kindness is also a sublime virtue. The first sentence in what is
now known as the Psalm of .Love is this: "Love suffereth long and
is kind."
However, in my thought tonight, I am prompted to place rev-
erence next to Love. Jesus mentioned it first in the Lord's prayer:
"Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name . . ." Hallow
— to make holy— to hold in reverence.
When Jesus cleansed the temple, he was filled with reverent
indignation because men were desecrating his Father's house, selling
doves and lambs to be offered as sacrifice. Money changers were
there for the convenience of those who came from other countries,
so they could give in local currency their temple contributions. Seem-
ingly, in their own eyes, they were justified, but they were doing
these things in the House of God. We are told that he overturned
the money changers' tables, and said to the sellers of doves, "Take
these things hence. Make not my Father's house a house of mer-
chandise."
Reverence Defined
"Reverence," wrote Ruskin, "is the noblest state in which a man
164 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Dag
can live in the world. Reverence is one of the signs of strength; ir-
reverence one of the surest indications of weakness. No man will
rise high who jeers at sacred things. The fine loyalties of life must
be reverenced or they will be foresworn in the day of trial."
Charles Jefferson, the author of "The Character of Jesus" writes:
"Men in many circles are clever, interesting, brilliant, but they lack
one of the three dimensions of life. They have no reach upward.
Their conversation sparkles, but it is frivolous and often flippant.
Their talk is witty, but the wit is often at the expense of high and
sacred things."
You can tell a true soul of wit by the things of which he makes
light. The best humorous writers avoid making light of religion, or
of sacred things.
Jefferson continues: "One finds this lack of reverence even in
the church. In every community there are those who treat the House
of God as they treat a streetcar, entering it and leaving it when they
please. Even habitual church attendants often surprise and shock
one by their irreverent behavior in the House of Prayer. Those per-
sons are not ignoramuses or barbarians; they are simply undeveloped
in the virtue of reverence."
Order in Classrooms
Our classrooms are sometimes places of boisterousness. Here
is where we need good teachers. A teacher who can present a lesson
interestingly will have good order, and when he or she finds students
who are rebellious, flipping papers, paying no attention, stumbling,
kicking one another, he or she may know that the lesson is not be-
ing properly presented. Perhaps it was not even properly prepared.
One of our mothers recently went to a Sunday School class to
try to find out why her son was losing interest. There was so much
boisterousness, so much confusion, so much noise, that she felt heart-
sick; and as she arose to leave she said to the teacher: "I thought
this was a Sunday School class, not bedlam!"
Self-Control Exemplified
I have said something about self-control, self-mastery, as being
one of the fundamental purposes of life. You see it exemplified in the
life of the Savior, on the Mount of Temptation, when he resisted the
tempter, who said: "If thou be the Son of God, command that these
stones be made bread," — an appeal to his appetite. "Man shall
not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of
the mouth of God."
"If thou be the Son of God," again strong in his taunting, "Cast
thyself down; for it is written" — he quotes scripture — "He shall give
his angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands they shall
bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone."
PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY
165
"It is written," said the Savior, "Thou shalt not tempt the Lord
thy God."
In the next temptation Satan is not taunting, but pleading. "All
these things will I give thee," showing him the kingdoms of the
world, "if thou wilt fall down and worship me."
That is a lesson of life. The tempter was foiled, taunting at first,
strong in his assurance that he could tempt, but at last pleading, and
finally banished. "Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." And
angels came and administered to him.
Now then, there is a lesson of life to us all. Satan tauntingly
tempts us, and unless we resist and have in mind a higher goal than
the mere indulgence or gratification of the physical, we are going
to weaken, and the tempter will gain in strength.
To Begin in Childhood
The lesson of self-control should begin in childhood, in the
home. Little children should have a sense of freedom to do as they
wish up to a certain point. Beyond that point they cannot go, and
that is when that freedom interferes with the rights, comfort or con-
venience of another member of the family.
I have told before about an incident that occurred in a zoo.
It is simple, and some probably may think we should not go to the
monkeys for lessons. I think they can teach us some. Sister McKay
and I stood one day, I believe it was at San Diego, watching a mother
monkey with a new born babe. She was guarding it, her quick eye
watching the other monkeys in the cage; but the little babe was free
to do just as it pleased, hopping around, weak in its infancy, getting
hold of the bars, starting to climb. When it would reach a certain
place, the mother would reach up and bring it back. When it got into
a danger point, that mother instinctively guarded it and said, "Back
this way." And then the babe was free again, but only within certain
limits.
I said to Sister McKay, "There is a lesson of life in guiding
children."
Rights of Others
In the classrooms children should be taught, should be free to
discuss, free to speak, free to participate in classwork, but no member
of the class has the right to distract another student by jostling or
making light and frivolous remarks. And I think in this Church, in
the priesthood quorums and classes and in auxiliaries, teachers and
superintendents ought not to permit it. Disorder injures the child who
makes it. He should learn that when he is in society there are certain
things which he cannot do with impunity. He cannot trespass upon
the rights of his associates.
Let children learn this lesson in youth because when they get
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Saturday. September 30 Second Day
out in society and try to trespass against the law, they will feel the
restraining hand and probably suffer punishment.
Good order in the classroom is essential to instill into the hearts
and lives of young men and young women the principle of self-con-
trol. They want to talk and they want to whisper, but they cannot
do it because it will disturb somebody else. Learn the power and
lesson of self-mastery.
Reverence should be particularly manifest in sacrament meeting,
in quorum meetings, in Sunday School, in M.I.A., in Primary, yes,
and in Relief Society. This is a missionary Church. People come
here for light and knowledge, for instruction, and they have a right
to find it when they come.
Extract from Letter
The following extract from a letter that came to the First Presi-
dency last week will illustrate my point:
"About one month ago two of your missionaries came to my
door with a Book of Mormon. Since I am a Catholic, and a Catholic
writer for our press, and since I am fully acquainted with Catholic
doctrine and our Holy Bible, I at first refused the offer of the Book
of Mormon. They, however, persisted, and as I have permission to
read other books, it being given me by my pastor since I am a writer,
I finally took the book. Of course you might well guess what hap-
pened. Having been trained during my sixteen years as a Catholic
to recognize the truth when I see, hear or read it, I could not very
well fail to recognize also that the Book of Mormon is true. This was
even more the case when they later brought what might be termed
its companion book, The Doctrine and Covenants.
"Surely this is not the kindly, gentle Jesus, as most Catholics
are taught to know him, but just as surely in the Doctrine and Cove-
nants this is the voice of Jesus as he spoke to the Apostles, the
Pharisees and scribes, and all the people during his three years of
public ministry on earth. Consequently, I began taking instructions,
and your missionaries came twice a week to hold cottage meetings.
"Then I was taken to some Church meetings over in Rodeo,
three miles from here, and I must admit that each time I have re-
turned home broken-hearted and mourning to myself, 'Oh, poor
Jesus, surely you have made the most miserable failure in your life
in trying to establish your Church anew with these people.'
"During the distribution of the bread and water I can discern
no spirit of prayer or prayerful reception among the congregation.
They are just as liable to be smiling and whispering together as not,
scarcely discerning the body of the Lord."
"Your own defects to know,
Make use of every friend and every foe."
PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY
167
Irreverence in Services
On September 13 there came to my desk this letter from one of our
stake workers:
"I refer to pronounced irreverence in our church services, with
the noise, laughter and confusion that often accompanies such a con-
dition. This is responsible for considerable criticism and dissatisfac-
tion and results in absenting many members from the meetings. Our
home, stake missionaries, are seriously handicapped in their work
as many fear to bring investigators to our meetings while this con-
dition of irreverence prevails.
"The trouble is often intensified by reason of frivolous remarks
by speakers on the stand, and outbursts of laughter from the audi-
ence, in which the children feel free to participate. This is a sad ad-
mission in connection with the true Church of Jesus Christ.
"Irreverence in God's house is not conducive to the best in-
terests of the sacrament administration and God must be displeased
with the insincerity of his children who partake of the sacred emblems
carelessly, devoid of reverence that should characterize true worship."
Improvement Noted
I should like to say here that my observation leads me to believe
that we have made a wonderful step in that. I have not been in a house
of worship, either in Sunday School or in sacrament meeting, where
the order during the administering of the sacrament has not been
just as perfect as it is at this moment in this building. A baby's voice,
perhaps, somewhere, but God is not displeased with a baby's voice,
when the parents and others are reverently thinking of the covenants
they are making. However, the writer of this letter seems to have had
a different experience.
I plead with you to develop this Christ-like attribute of reverence
in our houses of worship and better discipline in our classrooms. And
I believe that you brethren can lead in it.
Elders' Example Followed
I remember in 1923, attending a conference at Burnley, Liver-
pool Conference. Brothers and sisters came from various parts of the
district, and happy to see one another as you missionaries know they
are, shaking hands, members of the Church happy to see the elders,
shaking hands with them, and the elders joining in social greetings.
The meeting was held on the third floor of a public hall. In the
adjoining room the sisters were preparing the lunch. We could hear
the rattle of tin pans and of other receptacles. Ten o'clock came and
there was still noise. It was fully five minutes before there was order.
Six months from that time when we held a meeting with the
elders in that district, prior to the opening of the conference, we said:
"Brethren, the Lord is not displeased with our greetings, expressions
of love and brotherhood, but he is displeased with the irreverent
168 GENERAL CONFERENCE
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attitude, and we have some choice people, strangers who are not
used to this free intercourse of greetings so characteristic of Latter-
day Saint meetings. So tomorrow morning, after you have greeted
your friends from various places, without any announcement, at seven
minutes to ten o'clock, you quietly take your seats. Do not say a word.
You just go to your assigned places."
They did so and at four minutes to ten o'clock every member
of that district in attendance at the conference, following the example
of the missionaries, was in his or her seat, and there was order even
before the hour of opening arrived.
Reverence Enjoined
It is said that "Where two or three are gathered in my name,
there will I be to bless them," and I tell you when he is present we
should be reverent.
Someone said if Shakespeare were to enter this hall tonight, we
should all stand up to greet him, but if Christ entered, we should fall
on our knees and worship him.
God bless you, brethren, as leaders in Israel, as guides to youth,
to increase your influence with those among whom you labor. The
Lord help us to sanctify our houses of worship, that our chapels
may be indeed sacred places in which we meet to worship God, I
pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Male Chorus of the Tabernacle Choir and the Congrega-
tion joined in singing the hymn, "Redeemer of Israel."
PRESIDENT J. REUBEN CLARK, JR.
First Counselor in the First Presidency
My brethren, again I sense that this is a great privilege to stand
before you for a few minutes, and to say something to you that I
hope may be helpful. Before I finish I shall want to return to my solo
on the G string, "Unity," but I want to say a little something before-
hand, and I trust the Lord will be with me that what I say may be
in harmony with what He would have said.
The Priesthood
The question of the priesthood has always been to me an al-
luring question, and not only alluring, but more or less elusive. We
use the word priesthood apparently in at least two, if not three,
senses. We use it sometimes to mean the power of the priesthood.
I suppose in fact the priesthood is power. We use it sometimes to
indicate the organization through which the priesthood operates,
and we use it sometimes, apparently, to indicate the service which
the priesthood is to render.
PRESIDENT J. REUBEN CLARK, JR.
169
I am going to read two or three extracts from the brethren
of the past regarding the priesthood. The Prophet Joseph said:
"The priesthood is an everlasting principle and existed with God
from eternity, and will to eternity, without beginning of days or
end of years. The keys have to be brought from heaven whenever
the gospel is sent. When they are revealed from heaven it is by
Adam's authority."
On another occasion the Prophet said that Adam received
the priesthood before the world was created.
Pre-existent Calling
You may remember that as the account is given in the Pearl
of Great Price, Book of Abraham, the Father told Abraham that
sometime he had come down and organized the spirits, and then
he told Abraham that when he came down among them he found
many that were great and good, and further on he said to Abraham,
and I will read this to you:
". . . there were many of the noble and great ones; And God
saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of
them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among
those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and
he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen
before thou wast born."
Following upon this general principle, the Prophet Joseph said:
"Every man who has a calling," every man, "to minister to the
inhabitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the
grand council of heaven before this world was. I suppose," said he,
"that I was ordained to this very office in that grand council."
Brigham Young Quoted
Now I think I might read two statements from Brigham Young:
"If anybody wants to know what the priesthood of the Son of God
is, it is the law by which the worlds are, were and will continue
forever and ever. It is that system which brings worlds into existence
and peoples them, gives them their revolutions, their days, weeks,
months, years, their seasons and times, and by which they are rolled
up as a scroll, as it were, and grown to a higher state of existence."
And on another occasion he declared the priesthood to be "a
perfect system of government, of laws and ordinances, by which we
can be prepared to pass from one gate to another and from one
sentinel to another until we go into the presence of our Father
and God."
These various quotations must inevitably lead us to a great
deal of reflection, and as I have indicated, to me they suggest we
are using the term, priesthood, in the manner that I have spoken
about.
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Analogy Made
Now, I have often wondered if I could find an analogy to the
priesthood, and the best I have been able to do is to liken the
priesthood to citizenship. Potentially every citizen of the United
States is a president of the United States, speaking generally and
disregarding the limitations as to who may be president, but we
are not all presidents. Every one of us may be a senator or a
congressman. We have that power as citizens. We may be gover-
nors; we may be state legislators; we may be city councilmen; we
may be county commissioners; we may be judges. All of these or
each of them or any of them may come to any citizen, but in order
to exercise any particular function we must be duly appointed to
it or duly elected to it.
Now there are many differences between citizenship and
priesthood, many. One that occurs to one offhand is that a man
elected to be a judge in one locality, one jurisdiction, loses that
power when he moves to another jurisdiction. That is not true of
the priesthood. A man remains a deacon wherever he goes, or a
high priest, and may perform his functions under certain limi-
tations and rules.
But we do not now have the keys to do some of the things
which Brother Brigham said the priesthood was to do, or that the
priesthood did, for example, the creation and the governing of
worlds. I can think of this situation, this power in terms of human
government, civil government; the powers of sovereignty that rest
in the people and that are delegated to government, to be exercised,
by this man as a governor, by that man as a senator, and by another
man as a president of the United States. So do we in the priesthood.
Each one of us, as it seems to me, has certain functions of the whole
priesthood. A deacon has his, the teacher has his, the priest his, and
so on. And while under the priesthood, a man in a high place may
perform all the functions of those who are below, the one in the
lower bracket may not perform the functions of anybody in the
higher bracket. This principle does not of course obtain in our
civil government.
Ordination in Grand Council
I do not know whether we have a right to interpret the Prophet's
statement, "Every man who has a calling to administer to the in-
habitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the
grand council of heaven, before the world was," I do not know that
we may interpret that to mean any but those who have charge of
dispensations or are leaders therein, but I like to think that it does
include those of us of lesser calling and lesser stature. We have
been told ever since I was old enough to remember that those who
are coming forth among the Latter-day Saints were choice spirits,
and I like to think that perhaps in that grand council something
PRESIDENT J. REUBEN CLARK, JR. 171
at least was said to us indicating what would be expected of us,
and empowering us, subject to the re-confirmation here, to do certain
things in building up the kingdom of God on earth.
Each Part Has Own Function
Now the lesson that I would like to get out of that, has been
referred to by President McKay, and that is that this whole
priesthood organization — I am now using the term in the sense
of organization — each part of it, has its own function, and each man
belonging to the given order of priesthood, deacon, teacher,
priest, and so on, has certain things to do. If a quorum fails in a
ward, the ward is not carrying on as it should. If a member fails in
a quorum, the quorum is not carrying on as it should. We are all
bound together as one, and insofar as we fail, as individuals, to
carry on the work which we are supposed to do, we are to that
extent hindering the carrying on of the work of the Lord and to
that extent we are responsible for the lack or fulness of growth that
may occur on account of our failure.
There is no escape, as I see it, brethren, from that conclusion.
Perfect System of Government
Now, before passing to the unity matter, I wish to call your
attention to the fact that the Prophet said we had a perfect system,
"the priesthood was a perfect system of government."
Have you ever thought, and if you have not I suggest you
do think about it, that if the civil government of any of our com-
munities were to be suddenly wiped out, that the Church organi-
zation could govern the community if it were given the necessary
civil sanction. To illustrate, our teachers who are to keep the Church
in order, could act as the police force. Our bishops are authorized to
hold court, the high council and the president of the stake another
court, both of appellate and of original jurisdiction, with an appeal
to the Presidency of the Church from that decision. And in the
First Presidency of the Church, the President of the Church resides
the power and authority to make all necessary rules and regulations
for the government of the people.
We have already, therefore, set up in this Church of ours, an
organization of the Priesthood which could govern any community
if it were given the necessary civil sanction, and if chaos should
come, and if we travel along our present line far enough it will
come, some of you may live to see the necessity of such an action
as that.
Individual Responsibility
Now, brethren, coming back to our individual responsibility
for the welfare of the carrying on of the work of the Lord. Every
172 GENERAL CONFERENCE
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man having his own place must, if he is to fulfill his full duty and
perform his full functions, work with those about him. He cannot go
off on a line of his own and still help to carry on the work of the
Lord. The quorum must be united if it is to function properly, and
united means seeing and working eye to eye. The ward and all
the quorums in it must so function if the ward is to carry on and do
its work as it should. So with the stake and so with the Church as
a whole.
Urges Unity
And now I will repeat to you, brethren, what I have said to you
every time I have had the opportunity to talk to you, and that has
been every time since I came into this position, and I believe I have
attended every general priesthood meeting since then; if we were
united there is nothing that the body of priesthood of this Church
might not do within the functions of the priesthood, no matter what
it is. And I say to you further that if we saw eye to eye on
matters of civil government, which we are not likely to do, there
is nothing we might not accomplish there within the places and
jurisdictions where we live.
Now, brethren, I again pray, as I have always, that we will
be united. The Lord has laid down with sufficient clearness that
none of us needs have any doubt about it as to what his will is. He
set up this government under his divine guidance, and so far as
I am concerned, as I have said before so I say now, this government
of ours under the Constitution, being thus set up by the Lord, is
a part of my religion, and we shall not succeed, and we shall not
preserve our independence, our free institutions, our liberties,
unless we safeguard our rights under the Constitution.
This was said to us in the opening session of the conference
by President George Albert Smith.
May God give us his power and his wisdom and his inspir-
ation to help us do the things that we should do, to help us magnify
the priesthood which we have, which is a delegation of the power of
God himself — how greatly sobering that concept is — that we may
bring to pass the things which he has declared we should do, I
humbly pray, in the name of Jesus, Amen.
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH
Reference has been made to the responsibility of the priest-
hood, and I wonder if we fully appreciate what it means to have
conferred upon us a portion of the authority of our Heavenly Father
to officiate, and to teach the children of men. The condition of the
world today is pitiable. Nobody knows what the outcome will be.
A train pulled out of one of the stations here this week with quite
a large number of men, mostly young men, who are going out
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 173
to take part as a portion of the armed forces of the United
States. Every one of those men has lived where he could have re-
ceived the priesthood, I am sure. I do not know how many of them
have received it, but some of them have filled missions. History is
repeating itself. War and distress are giving anxiety and deep sor-
row to the peoples of this earth.
Growth of Church
In 1830 the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was
organized with six members. Today the Church numbers more than
a million souls. From the six men who were in that meeting when
the Church was organized, and those who have followed, the Church
has continued to grow and develop into a great organization. It may
interest you to know that it is estimated that in Barratt Hall and
the Assembly Hall and here in this building tonight there are approxi-
mately fourteen thousand men and boys who hold the authority of
the priesthood. As has been intimated, this is the largest gathering
of priesthood in a priesthood meeting that we have had, and the
work continues to go forward.
There was a time when to be a member of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints brought ridicule and annoyance to the
one who was recognized as such. How different it is today. Many
offices in the states and territories and the Islands of the sea where
our people are located are held by men who hold the priesthood.
I can remember a visit that I made in Washington at a time
when our Representative from this state was not a member of the
Church. I thought I would like to go and pay my respects to
him, but when I called on him he was annoyed. I was only a young
man at the time. Since then that great body that meets as a
Congress in the United States has been honored by representatives
of this Church and they have made friends for the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, because of the dignity of their
attitude among their fellows.
There is not any position, from the President of the United
States down, that may not be held by a member of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints if the Lord wills.
Power of the Priesthood
When I see this marvelous group of men and boys here tonight,
I think, "what a power we have in the world that is not recognized
by the world in many cases." I spoke of the political privileges that
are ours, each of us having a right, if we have qualified, to cast our
vote; and when we go to the Congress of the United States we find
members of the Church there who receive us with consideration, and
seek to look after our interests and keep us where we ought to be,
not trailing along, but pushing forward.
The Priesthood is what I am thinking about. What a wonder-
174 GENERAL CONFERENCE
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ful privilege it is to represent our Heavenly Father by holding the
priesthood, and it does not prevent us from going anywhere in the
world in honor, if we dignify our calling. There are those who do
not like us. That is because they do not know who we are, but little
by little, and very rapidly now, the men such as are sitting here to-
night are going out into the world and mingling with the people, and
it is remarkable what a host of friends there are scattered over the
earth not members of the Church, who have been brought to realize
the dignity and the worthwhile attitude of these men who have the
priesthood.
The Voice of Warning
I want to read something from the First Section of the Doctrine
and Covenants: "Hearken, O ye people of my church, saith the
voice of him who dwells on high, and whose eyes are upon all men;
yea, verily I say: Hearken ye people from afar; and ye that are upon
the islands of the sea, listen together. For verily the voice of the
Lord is unto all men "
That covers a good deal of territory, particularly when we re-
alize that the voice of the Lord, the instructions of our Heavenly
Father, must be carried by those who are authorized by Him to
carry His messages. You see, we have a great responsibility.
"For verily the voice of the Lord is unto all men, and there is
none to escape; and there is no eye that shall not see, neither ear
that shall not hear, neither heart that shall not be penetrated. And
the rebellious shall be pierced with much sorrow; for their iniquities
shall be spoken upon the housetops, and their secret acts shall be
revealed."
And then He goes on and says: "And the voice of warning shall
be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have
chosen in these last days. And they shall go forth and none shall
stay them, for I the Lord have commanded them."
It is not a question of our choice. It is a question of following
the instructions, and direction of our Heavenly Father.
"And they shall go forth and none shall stay them, . . . Behold,
this is mine authority, and the authority of my servants, and my
preface unto the book of my commandments, which I have given
them to publish unto you, O inhabitants of the earth."
Gospel to be Preached
That is a portion of the First Section of the Doctrine and
Covenants. We who are here tonight have been told that there
are approximately six thousand of our missionaries scattered
throughout the world, and yet that is not a drop in the bucket, bufi
in the Lord's own way, and He says it will be done by those that
He directs, all the people of the world must be reached if possible
and the Gospel of Jesus Christ brought to them as far as we can go.
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 175
So we have a great responsibility, my brethren, a tremendous re-
sponsibility.
I remember when I was a child, I thought how few we were.
At that time there were some difficulties and our people were being
annoyed; but then somebody said: "Oh, never mind, the Lord and
one man is a majority." So it is not a question of how many of us
there are. We have the responsibility, and in order that we may
carry that responsibility we will be placed in all kinds of positions
of honor and trust, not only in the Congress of the United States,
but in our great Universities, and at the head of our great businesses.
It is marvelous how many things occur.
Visit to Albany
I think I will tell you a little incident that occurred many years
ago. I was in Washington and so I wrote to the Governor of New
York who at that time was Charles Seaman Whitman and told him
that I was on my way home and if he was going to be in Albany on
such and such a date, I think it was on Thursday as I remember it
now, that I would be glad to get off the train and call and pay my
respects and take the next train on home. I received a telegram in
reply, reading, "Come right along. I will receive you here."
The result was that I got through in Washington a day earlier
than I thought so I arrived in Albany a day ahead of time and
went to the Hotel Teneyck, with the expectation of staying all
night and filling my appointment the next day. I then telephoned
the Governor's office and learned that he was out of town, and
I told his secretary I had an appointment with him. He said: "Yes,
I know and the governor will be here in time to fill his appointment
tomorrow."
I thought, "why not do something in the meantime?" I have
always found that I feel so much better when I am busy trying to dis-
seminate the truth. The result was I went out and located two of our
missionaries, just humble young men. They were about nineteen, pos-
sibly twenty, years of age. I found them and asked if there
were some place we could spend the evening and do a little mission-
ary work, and they said: "Yes, we will go and call on the photog-
rapher. He and his family are members of the Church, and they
will be happpy to have us come."
I said: "All right." I went into the office of the hotel and said
to the clerk: "If by any chance anybody calls for me here, I am going
out to spend the evening, but I would like to have them call me — I
had the telephone number of the photographer — call me there."
Call from Governor
The missionaries were delighted and we went down and were
having a lovely visit. About nine o'clock the telephone rang and
176 GENERAL CONFERENCE
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the good sister answered the telephone and then she came in, and
my, her eyes were nearly popping out of her head. She said: "Why,
Brother Smith, the Governor of New York wants to talk to you on
the telephone."
Of course I was wonderfully surprised. So I went to the
telephone and when I took it up I said: "Is this you, Governor?"
He said: "Yes."
I said: "This is George Albert Smith of Salt Lake City. I am
glad to hear your voice."
"Well," he said, "I am glad to hear yours. You are coming
to see me, aren't you?"
And I replied: "Well, I stopped here for that purpose. What
time shall I come?"
He said: "Ten o'clock."
I asked: "Ten o'clock tomorrow morning?"
He said: "No, ten o'clock tonight."
I said: "I do not want to disturb you at your home. I
thought I was going to go into your office and shake hands with you
and visit a few minutes."
He said: "If you wait to get into my office we won't have any
visit. Come on down tonight, at 10 o'clock."
Visit at Governor's Mansion
I went back and excused myself from the family and said to the
young missionaries: "Will one of you go and help me find the
Mansion House?" I did not have any idea where it was. Elder
Peterson went with me.
When we got down to the house — it was during World War
number one and the house was surrounded by militia — they would
not let us in the gates until I insisted that they go to the house and
find out that I had an appointment. They did and came back
and escorted us to the house. When we went there the Governor
received us very graciously and said: "Come with me and we
will go up to my den and we will have a good time together. Nobody
will bother us up there, not even the telephone."
The young missionary was about as much surprised as anybody
could be to be received in the home of the Governor like that. It was
just like we were members of the family.
When we got upstaris, the Governor seated himself. By the
way, it was in a room about fourteen feet square and there was a
table on one side and all around the room were cupboards of
books. It was the private office of the Governor, and when he
wanted to be by himself that is where he went.
Discussion of World War I
He sat in his chair, on one side of the table, and Elder Peterson
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 177
and I sat opposite him. We had hardly gotten seated until the
Governor said: "Do you folks know that there is a war on?"
I said, "Of course we know there is a war on."
He said: "You are way out there in Utah; I didn't think
you would know." He continued: "You are out of danger; you
cannot be reached out there."
I said, "Governor, we are American citizens and we are real
Americans, and I want to tell you we have furnished our quota
of men, and there has not been a draftee — everyone has volun-
teered." I said: "We have taken our full quota of bonds. We have
paid our full share of Red Cross assessment. We have done every-
thing we have been asked for. Now, why don't you think we know
there is a war on?"
He replied: "You have done better than we have back here.
"Well," he repeated, "how is this war coming out?"
I answered: "Don't you know?"
He said: "No, I don't know who is going to win it."
"Where is your Book of Mormon?" I asked.
He just turned around in his swivel chair and reached in the
cupboard behind him, took down a copy of the Book of Mormon
and laid it on the table in front of me. Elder Peterson was astonished
to see a copy of the Book of Mormon in the Governor's library.
I turned to the Book of Mormon and I said: "Governor, I am
not going to take a lot of time, but you can find out right in here
how this war is coming out." I said: "We are going to win the war,"
and then I read to him what is found in the Book of Mormon with
reference to the people of this nation, in which the Lord told us:
"And this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there
shall be no kings upon the land, who shall raise up unto the Gen-
tiles. ... I, the Lord, the king of heaven, will be their king,"
and then He refers to the fact that if we keep His commandments —
that is what I want to bring home to us tonight — if we keep His
commandments we have the promise from Him of His preservation
and His watchcare.
The Governor said: "I had not seen that."
"Well," I said: "you are not doing a very good job reading
your Book of Mormon."
Subsequent Meeting with Missionary
He thanked me. We had a lovely visit. We went away and
I did not see that missionary for a long time. In fact, I had forgotten
what his name was, until about two years ago in the Hotel Utah
when I attended a meeting of oil executives. I happened to be there as
an invited guest, and I was made acquainted with some of those pres-
ent, but when someone attempted to introduce me to one young man
he said: "You cannot introduce me to President Smith. I know him
and he knows me. We have done missionary work together."
I was puzzled. And then he told the story of how he took
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me to the Governor's home and then of course I remembered him.
He is now the President of one of the great oil corporations in
California. But one of the most interesting things was, after I
had explained to the Governor that the Book of Mormon contained
the word of the Lord; that it was not what Joseph Smith had
said, but what the Lord had said — when I laid the book down, the
missionary picked it up as quick as he could and looked to see how
on earth it got into the Governor's office. On the front page was
this inscription: "To the Honorable Charles Seaman Whitman,
Governor of New York, with compliments and best wishes of
George Albert Smith."
Brethren, I have mentioned the Book of Mormon. I wonder
how many of our families have read the Book of Mormon. There
are a good many things in there that could be referred to, as well as
this commandment or revelation of our Heavenly Father, of what
we must do. We are distributing the literature of the Church where
we can in all parts of the civilized world and we are not doing all that
we will have to do because we have not reached very many people.
Our representatives in the various barracks, schools, and
in the various state legislatures and the national legislature, members
of the Church everywhere, all have an opportunity, and most
of them take advantage of that opportunity, to explain to the
people what the Gospel of Jesus Christ really means.
That is a large contract that we have. Each of us has the
responsibility. We may begin by training our boys and girls at
home so that they know what the Gospel is and then when op-
portunity comes they will be able to share it with others.
If I had time I could tell you many experiences I have had,
similar to the one just related, and I have always found that the peo-
ple who gave me an opportunity to sit and talk with them followed
me up after that and went out of their way to be friendly. I may add
that the Governor of New York used to send me an invitation to his
public functions. I never had the opportunity to go but once and
then I got stuck in the snow and could not get there.
People are friendly with us if we will give them a chance. It
has not been very long since I was invited to offer the invocation
at the opening of the United States Senate. This invitation was ex-
tended to a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, a stranger there except for the fact we had members and
friends there who knew us. That could not have happened fifty years
ago, but there is no end to the opportunity that is ours, and the
thing for us to do, no matter where we are, is to seek to share with
Opportunities to Teach Gospel
Friendliness Experienced
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 1 79
others the joyous teachings that have come to us from our Heavenly
Father in all of the scriptures, the Old and the New Testament,
Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, Pearl of Great Price.
We have a marvelous library, brethren.
Responsibility to Teach Gospel
I am not going to ask you to hold up you hands now, but
I would like you to ask yourselves, how many of you have read
anything to your families out of these books from time to time,
called them together to teach them the things that they ought to
know. I am afraid many of us would have to say we have been
too busy.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is on the earth, and think of the
number of men there are here tonight who are authorized through
the priesthood they hold to speak for our Heavenly Father and
to teach his Gospel.
It is a joyous thing to me to know that the way is opening all
the time, and it becomes easier and I say to you brethren, I do not
suppose there is hardly a week passes, not a month anyhow, but
somebody of prominence from these United States or from other
parts of the world, comes into the office here, the President's office,
to find out what we are doing.
Visit of Railroad President
Only last week the President of one of the great eastern rail-
roads came in, the first time he has ever been here in Salt Lake City,
and he came in and we sat down and visited for quite a long time.
He asked questions and they were answered, and he went out,
wanting to see what there was to see. He was leaving that night, but
he said: "I never dreamed I would find what I have found here."
I could not go with him so some of the other brethren, Brother
Haycock, my secretary, and one of the other brethren, saw to it
that they found our welfare organization, saw the monument to
the pioneers up here and other points of interest.
There is always something to interest them while we are
teaching them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So let us not lose our
opportunity, let us not lose the privilege that the Lord has given
to us to teach His truth. The more we teach it the more we will
appreciate it, and the more we will be appreciated by those we asso-
ciate with.
Priesthood Meeting a Delight
Tonight, this great priesthood meeting is a delight to me. I am
grateful to be able to be here. I am glad I can remember when I was
180 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30
Second Day
just a young man, and I was a missionary in the Southern States.
Some of the very finest people in the South would receive us if we
would go to their homes in a dignified way. They were not always
interested in the Gospel of Jesus Christ but they would treat us
kindly, in most instances, but of course in some cases they were not
so kind.
I am thinking of our opportunity. What are we going to do?
Here we are, the representatives of the Church, a very great portion
of the representatives of the priesthood of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints tonight, and our Heavenly Father has
warned us that difficulties are coming. If I were to read more
in the Doctrine and Covenants I could call attention to many things
there that put us on notice that we have something more to do
than to just go on and take it easy.
Experiences of Noah and Abraham
Remember that in the days of Noah, he preached the Gospel
for approximately a hundred years and the people would not
repent, but by and by, the warning that had been given to them
was realized and they were all wiped out except the few that were
in the ark.
You remember the experience of Abraham when he was visited
by a holy being on the way to Sodom and Gomorrah to destroy
the people, and he began to plead for them. He knew there were
some good people there. He had relatives there. And so finally he
asked: "Are you going to destroy the good people?"
"No, if there are good people there, enough of them, they can
save the whole situation."
And then Abraham began: "Well, if there are fifty, will you save
the cities?"
"Yes, if there are fifty."
"If there are forty?"
"Yes, if there are forty."
And Abraham kept on going until he got down as far as he
thought he could go, I guess, and was told, that if ten righteous
people could be found there in those two great cities that the cities
would be spared. But he could not find them.
Condition of America
Now I wonder what about America. What proportion of the
population of the land we live in is a righteous portion. It is right-
eousness that will preserve us.
The Lord's promise to be our king and our law-giver is on
the condition of righteousness, and my, what a wonderful oppor-
tunity He gives to us and how happy we ought to be to take advan-
tage of it and bless our fellows by carrying the message to them.
PRESIDENT GEORGE ALBERT SMITH 1 81
Disbelief of World
The people of the world may not believe it. They did not believe
it when the Savior came to John at the waters of Jordan. They did
not believe He was the Savior of the world. When He came unto
John and asked for baptism, John said: "I have need to be baptized
of Thee and comest Thou to me?"
Jesus replied: "Suffer it to be so now for thus it becometh us to
fulfill all righteousness." "And he suffered him."
Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of Mary, went down into the
water, and when He came up out of the water, the Holy Ghost
descended upon Him in the form of a dove. If John had had any
doubt about what he had accomplished surely that would have
brought him to a realization, and then a voice from heaven said:
"This is my Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased."
John did not find fault with Jesus for letting him baptize Him.
John was a very humble man. John then went his way and tried
to save his own people, his own race. And they finally took his life
and that has been the history of the world all the way down.
There have been war and destruction and now we are faced,
not with any ordinary situation, but we are faced with a war by
Anti-Christ against the people who believe in the divine mission of
the Savior.
Set Homes in Order
What are we going to do? We have our responsibility, and
I am sure we will not disappoint those who have depended upon
us to do our part. But the most important thing that we can do is
set our own homes in order, to see if there is carelessness or indiffer-
ence in them, teach our families, and unite them and make them
happy in keeping the commandments of our Heavenly Father,
because only on the condition of righteousness can even this
great Church continue and endure to do the work that it has to do.
Brethren, you have come from many parts of the world, mostly,
of course, from the Western Hemisphere, but you will be returning
to your homes. Do not fail to appreciate that the Lord has given you
a wonderful blessing, but it will only be a blessing to you on condi-
tion that you observe His laws and keep His commandments.
Waiting Upon the Lord
We are all brethren here tonight, meeting together in the Lord's
House, waiting upon Him, and I am sure we will have a happy time
tomorrow in our meetings.
I trust everbody has a place to stay tonight. I hope that the
adjustment has been made before this. We sometimes have had
our people come from the outlying districts thinking they could go
182 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 30 Second Dag
into a hotel at any time, only to find they could not get a place
to stay. Now, if there are any of you people here tonight who
live away, who haven't any place to stay, you see if you are
sitting by a real Latter-day Saint or a make-believe, and tell your
troubles to your neighbor, and if he cannot take you to his home he
can find a place where you can stay, and you will be happy.
Gratitude for Companionship
I pray that the Lord will bless us all. I am so grateful for
the companionship of such men as are sitting here tonight, grate-
ful to be able to shake your hands and meet you wherever I
find you, grateful to welcome another member into the Quorum of the
Twelve. The Church continues to grow, and while Brother George
F. Richards has filled a great mission, performed a great part, and
the others that we have mentioned here, Brother Frank Evans and
others, what they have done they will be blessed for, but if we
want to be among those whose names are recorded in the Lamb's
Book of Life as being entitled to a place in the Celestial Kingdom
when this earth becomes that kingdom, we have got to earn that
ourselves, individually. The Lord has given us the priesthood,
given us the opportunity, given us all these wonderful revelations
contained in the scriptures, and I am sure we are not going to waste
our privileges and fail to do our part.
Blessings Asked
I pray that the Lord will bless us all, that we will be worthy to
bear the priesthood that He has offered to us and conferred upon
us, that wherever we go people will be able to say, "That man is a
servant of the Lord."
When you go to our homes tonight, please be careful. It is dark.
The automobiles are running in every direction, pretty near, except
straight up, and we will have to be careful and not be hit. Be as
careful as you can, and then when the conference is finished and
you go to your homes, be equally careful, because somebody is losing
his life as a result of unnecessary accidents practically every hour of
the day.
I pray that the Lord will bless us, that we will be real brothers,
and that if we have families that we will be real fathers and husbands
in our homes, not just make-believes. Do not fail to have your
family prayers, brethren, it brings a blessing that not anything
else does.
That we may all so conduct ourselves that when the Lamb's
Book of Life is opened disclosing those who are entitled to a place
here upon this earth in the Celestial Kingdom, to live forever in the
companionship of Jesus Christ, our Lord, and that all our names
CHURCH OF THE AIR
183
will be found recorded there and those we love, not one missing,
I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
The Tabernacle Choir Male Chorus sang "The Long Day
Closes," after which President A. Hale Holgate of the Duchesne
Stake offered the benediction.
CHURCH OF THE AIR
The Church of the Air broadcast was presented Sunday morning,
October 1, from 8:30 to 9:00 over radio station KSL and the Colum-
bia Broadcasting System.
The Tabernacle Choir, under the leadership of J. Spencer Corn-
wall, furnished the music for this service. Elder Alexander Schreiner
was at the organ. Richard L. Evans was the announcer.
Announcer: The Church of the Air is presented by CBS so
that men of different faiths may bring their messages to a nationwide
congregation of worshipers. Today's service comes to you from the
Tabernacle on Temple Square, through the facilities of Station KSL
in Salt Lake City. The speaker will be Dr. John A. Widsoe, a mem-
ber of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints. The title of Elder Widtsoe's talk is:
Be of Good Courage. Music is provided by the Tabernacle Choir
under the direction of J. Spencer Cornwall with Alexander Schreiner
at the organ.
The service opens with a sacred song by Bach: "My Faith Is
Still Secure and Still I Love my God."
The Choir sang: "My Faith Is Still Secure" — Bach.
Announcer: We shall now hear on this Church of the Air service,
Dr. John A. Widtsoe, scientist, educator, and author, and a member
of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints. Dr. Widtsoe has titled his talk: Be of Good
Courage.
ELDER JOHN A. WIDTSOE
Dear Radio Friends: Our day is one of much confusion, un-
certainty and fear. This unhappy condition is world-wide. Too many
mature people look with sincere longing upon the past; youth on the
threshold of life's activity are inclined to view the future with
distrust. There is a feeling of helplessness in the air. The enthusiasms
of life are vanishing.
This is neither natural nor normal. It darkens the day and
184 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October J Third Day
clouds our every task. It develops slavery to unknown, dreaded
forces. It is destructive of human joy.
This should not be so. The new world, our world, made one by
audible, visual and physical communication, and by the free inter-
change of personal opinion, should yield days of such satisfactions
as have not been known before.
There is evil in the world, ever designing to destroy humanity.
That goes without saying. Evil offered itself to the first man; it will
pound, however uselessly, on the ears of the last. Evil forces, in
whatever disguise, must be fought, desperately if needs be, and
brought to their knees; else life's sweetness will disappear. This
battle between right and wrong, between good and bad, has been
waged, and often has raged, through the generations of time, and
will continue to the end.
Normal men, made in the image of God, have always accepted
cheerfully the challenge of evil as a part of life. The battle really has
given zest to existence. Moreover, and this gives courage to weak
man, history records that in every struggle evil has gradually been
defeated and at length has been beaten down.
Incarnate evil, despite its assiduous endeavors, has always lost
ground. Finally victory has been on the side of right.
Thereby has come man's marvelous conquest over surrounding
forces, and the steady improvement in the last few hundred years
of the conditions of the human race. Always, if on the side of right-
eousness, man has managed to banish the gilded tyranny of evil.
Yet, despite the lessons of the past, fear, unnecessary fear, lurks
in many human breasts. What of tomorrow? is shouted by the
forces of evil. In the consequent din is forgotten the glorious pro-
mise that "Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." (Matt. 6:34)
Forgotten also is the ancient truth that fear is the devil's first and
chief weapon. Make a man or a nation afraid, and his strength,
like that of Samson shorn of his locks, is gone. He is no longer
useful in the work of the world. He becomes a tool of the unholy
forces which seek to destroy mankind.
Gideon, mighty man of ancient Israel, was called to rescue his
people from a seven-year oppression by the Midianites and associat-
ed people. He raised therefore an army of thirty-two thousand men to
fight the enemy. But in those days, as in ours, battles were won not
by numbers but by men of quality. So he was commanded to proclaim :
"Whosoever is fearful and afraid let him return. And there
returned of the people twenty and two thousand . . ." — (Judges 7:3)
It was a high percentage. It is probably as high in the world
today. Nevertheless Gideon's army was stronger because the faith-
ful ones were left. Fear never fails to lead a man or a group of people
to weakness and to ultimate failure.
The fears of man are legion. They float to the surface from
submerged corners in our consciousness. They are often the pro-
ducts of our imagination.
CHURCH OF THE AIR
185
Really what have we to fear? Physical destruction perhaps, first.
We are naturally afraid of pain. We look with dread, for example,
upon the A-bomb, and the theoretical H-bomb, and other devices of
somewhat lesser horror, produced by the misuse of powers placed in
the hands of man. At the worst, their effects will be local, and mini-
mized as the commonsense of the nations develops.
The frequent, recent fear arises that a day may come when the
whole world will be annihilated by an atomic chain reaction. That
is an idle fear. It is not yet within the power of man and may never
be. The earth is old; the stars in the sky made of earth-like elements
are old. Earth and stars have long hung in space. The universe is
not going to explode into atomic rays — not in our day — of that we
may be certain. That fear is groundless and with the accompanying
dread should be cast out.
Civilized man needs food and clothing and shelter. In the
turmoil of the new day, he fears that he may be deprived of these ne-
cessities. He forgets that the earth has not changed, except in spots.
As the seasons come and go, the needs of man will be supplied by
mother earth as in the past, if man does his part. It is easy to awaken
a fear; as easy to banish it if reasonable thinking is used.
Then there is the fear of other men — people with the wrong con-
ception of life, to whom a neighbor is but a tool with which to pro-
tect themselves, often to satisfy their lusts. To them life has no
meaning beyond the flesh of the day. They do not know the spiritual
world, which is the greater and more powerful world. Such travelers
in the muck of life promise much to gain their ends, but keep no
promise. Such men are more dangerous than material weapons,
however horrible.
Usually evil philosophies use evil material tools. The great
danger in these philosophies is, however, that they simulate truth.
They are deceiving; and by their deceit often secure as adherents
otherwise honest people. We should for our protection uncover
these masked devils.
Here also, fear is futile. Righteous men if united are masters of
their generation and can and should cast out all such fears, and
should sternly set about to root out such weeds of existence. False
teachings fall before truth.
It would be better for man's happiness to substitute for such
fears a proper control of the use of his powers, whether of his
natural endowment, or those that have been discovered by the
patient searchers for truth.
For example, there should be less glibness about the use of atomic
energy in warfare, and more about its possible use in peaceful arts.
More should be said about the futility of war with its devilish de-
struction of human life and property. More should be said about the
nobility of man, and his possible Godlike approach when he uses
his time, talents and power to supply natural human needs. When-
ever that is done, much fear will disappear. More should be said
186 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday. October 1 Third Dag
about the good earth and its willingness to yield bountifully to
man's toil.
An evil philosophy of life can best be stifled when it is given
no corner in the discussions of men. Clubs would do better to dis-
cuss the principles of our own free government than the remote
doctrine of an ancient poet. Whether fear shall engulf us or not is a
matter in our own hands.
Men who lay aside fear become the masters of the day.
It is a pity that many who allow themselves to fear seek refuge in
the temporary forgetfulness that follows the satisfaction of un-
natural appetites. Instead of a wise and intelligent approach to the
apparently difficult problems of life, multitudes have turned to
nerve-whipping drugs, which often have become daily companions,
or to the shame of immorality, or to the mania of chance. To such
persons, fear may temporarily be lost in the brutality or sinful indul-
gences, but it remains under cover to poison the full joy of life.
There is no happy future for mankind, no removal of fear, while in
the society of sin.
More terribly fear-begetting is the doctrine that the world in
which we live is purposeless.
Freedom from fear comes only when the earth and all upon it are
conceived to be expressions of a mighty divine purpose. The unhappy
ones of this age, which is full of possible joy, usually can see no pur-
pose in life. That is a great calamity, perhaps the greatest in human
lives. The Lord placed his children on earth in his love for them and
for their good. They are here in harmony with this mighty divine
purpose.
Our purposeful world is under the direction of the Lord. It
cannot be conceived that the Master would place his children on
earth and then forget them! That is not the method of Divinity.
Chance does not rule in the heavens or on earth. Men who harbor
fear may rest assured that in the providences of the Lord, righteous-
ness will triumph on earth. The Lord's purposes will prevail. That
knowledge drives out fear. The highest attainable joy of man, of
any man, is the certainty that he lives in a purposeful world made
for his good. Fear cannot dwell with such a faith.
Those who do not believe in a purposeful world are to be
pitied. They cast God out of their lives. They are atheists, creatures
without home or anchorage. Thrown back upon themselves, upon their
own weak powers, with no help but that of men, such persons are
unspeakably lonely. Fears overtake them, and force them to seek
unnatural excitements. The convictions of such men rest upon in-
secure foundations. They cannot be safely followed.
The confusion and contention, the uncertainty in the world,
come from the failure to take God into partnership in the acts of our
daily lives. We must battle for the right, if needs be. Give evil no
CHURCH OF THE AIR
187
quarter, To put trust in God, when we have done our best, is the
final refuge of mortal man. Men must give heed to God's voice, as
heard through the centuries. If that is done, all is well; but when the
Lord is forgotten, disaster overflows the world.
All who have fear in their hearts should turn willingly to him
who created the earth and all upon it. The wise ones of old have
warned us. When ancient Israel was depressed, as many are today,
Moses spoke to them:
Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them:
for the Lord thy God, He it is that doth go with thee; He will not fail
thee, nor forsake thee. — (Deuteronomy 31:6.)
And David, king of Israel, completed the thought:
Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine
heart: wait, I say, on the Lord. — (Psalms 27:14).
Though all this is true, all who seek to drive away fear, must
be active in the battle. Evil, the cause of fear, will turn to good only
as righteousness prevails. The Lord will solve all earthly problems
only as man makes himself worthy of divine help. Men must be
"anxiously engaged in a good cause," the cause of the Lord.
We must be vocal in our opposition to evil; we must be eager
to cast evil out from among us. In the home circle, in our churches,
in our places of toil, wherever we walk and talk, as members of
society and as citizens of our land, we must stand as enemies of
evil. There must be no yielding to the whisperings from the dun-
geons of existence. Then the Lord will add his power and his bless-
ings; fear will flee.
We need everywhere throughout our sunlit land men who are
strong enough for righteousness to face the enemy.
When Gideon of old was left with only ten thousand unafraid
men, other tests were given this remainder of his large army. Gid-
eon could take no chances. The cause, the freedom of his people,
was too great. So he watched his men.
When the army, marching in the heat of the day, crossed a
creek, some loitered, took their time, lay down to drink; others, how-
ever, only three hundred of the ten thousand, eager to meet the
enemy could not wait; they merely cupped their hands and drank as
they marched hurriedly along. They caused no delay. These three
hundred became Gideon's army; the others were sent home. With
these three hundred Gideon won glorious victories.
With such men, in any day, every fear vanishes.
The feeling of depression that bows down many of our people
today should be replaced by a song of courageous gladness. The Lord
is at the helm. Therefore, we should be full of courage. Our task is to
keep the law of the Lord, to reject every evil offering, and to assist
eagerly in the solution of present-day problems. Then we can safely
188 GENERAL CONFERENCE
Sunday, October I Third Day
trust the future. Then we shall no longer be afraid. Those who then
may suffer will be those who will not do these things.
In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
The Choir then sang: "Awake Ye Saints" — Stephens
Organ interlude.
Music: Theme — Organ and humming choir: "Sweet Is the
Work."
Announcer: Time and facilities for the Church of the Air are
provided without charge by the Columbia network and its affiliated
stations, and in the same spirit the participants give their services.
The congregational singing of the Conference was directed b>
J. Spencer Cornwall, Conductor, and Richard P. Condie, Assistant
Conductor of the Tabernacle Choir.
The Salt Lake Tabernacle Choir was in attendance at the
Sunday sessions and presented musical numbers at those meetings.
J. Spencer Cornwall conducted the singing of the Choir.
The Salt Lake Tabernacle Male Chorus, J. Spencer Cornwall,
conductor, furnished the choral numbers for the General Priesthood
meeting, Saturday evening, September 30.
The Choir singing for the Friday morning and afternoon ses-
sions, September 29, was by the Combined Chorus of Relief So-
ciety Singing Mothers from the Cache and Salt Lake City Stakes,
with Florence Jepperson Madsen conducting, and with Elder Frank
W. Asper at the organ.
The Choir singing for the Saturday morning and afternoon ses-
sions, September 30, was by the Deseret Stake Choir, Elder Ladd
R. Cropper, director, Elder Roy M. Darley at the organ.
The music of the Tabernacle Choir and Organ Broadcast Sun-
day morning, 9:00 to 9:30 as also the music for the Church of the
Air broadcast was directed by J. Spencer Cornwall. Alexander
Schreiner was at the organ, and the spoken word was by Richard L.
Evans.
Accompaniments and interludes on the great organ were played
by Alexander Schreiner and Frank W. Asper.
Stenographic notes of the Conference were taken by Frank
W. Otterstrom and Joseph Anderson.
Joseph Anderson
Clerk of the Conference
Index
PAGE
Anderson, Elder Joseph — Report 79
Authorities and Officers Present 2
Authorities and Officers Sustained 83
Benson, Elder Ezra Taft 142
Support of Family 142, Gratitude for Brethren 143, Spirit of Brother-
hood 143, Spiritual Uplift Experienced 144, Impelling Force of Gospel
145, Critical Period 145, Essentials for Security 146, Real Dedication
Required 146, Need for Righteousness 147, Commandments to Observe
147, Good Citizenship 148, Blessing 148
Bowen, Elder Albert E. 69
Washington's Farewell Message 70, The Christian Church 70, In-
fluence Weakened 71, Revival of Faith Needed 71, Unified Action
Required 72, Religious Isolationism 72, A Great Brotherhood 73, Effect
on Family Life 73, Religion a Stabilizer 74, Solid Conviction Required
Changes in Church Officers and Organizations 79
Child, Elder Francis A 42
Choir and Organ Broadcast 105
Church of the Air 183
Clark, President J. Reuben, Jr. 28, 50, 78, 79, 83, 91, 97, 99, 103
Clark, President J. Reuben, Jr. 99
Sermon on Mount of Olives 99, Heresies Now Present 100, Arianism
100, Paganistic Immorality 101, Evidence about the Savior 101, Lack
of Understanding 102, Visions Given 102, Testimony 103
Clark, President J. Reuben, Jr. 168
The Priesthood 168, Pre-existent Calling 169, Brigham Young Quoted
169, Analogy Made 170, Ordination in Grand Council 170, Each Part
Has Own Function 171, Perfect System of Government 171, Individual
Responsibility 171, Urges Unity 172
Cowley, Elder Matthew 23
Never Lose a Friend 23, Blessings of Gathering 23, Love for Native
Races 24, Prophecies Fulfilled 25, God's Kingdom Established 25,
Loyalty to Priesthood 26, Thanksgiving for Natives 26
Evans, Elder Richard L. ....138
Figures Quoted 138, Men of Courage and Faith 139, Uncertainties
Today 139, Year of Anniversaries 140, Acceptance of Truth 140,
Observations at Mt. Palomar 140, Cling to Eternal Verities 141, Pur-
sue Purposes of Life 141, Prayer for Youth 142
First Day — Morning Meeting 3
First Day — Afternoon Meeting 28
General Authorities and Officers of the Church Present 2
General Authorities and Officers Sustained 83
190
INDEX
General Priesthood Meeting 161
Hunter, Elder Milton R. 58
Faith Exhibited 58, Law of Tithing 59, Law Given to Nephites 59,
Tithing Revealed Anew 60, Experience at Interview 60, Covenant to
Obey 61, Teachings of Joseph F. Smith 61, Blessings to Follow 62
Isaacson, Elder Thorpe B. 86
Tribute to President Richards 86, Conferences Strengthen Spiritually
87, Missionary Letter 87, Lord Inspires Leaders 88, Mission of Prophet
Joseph 88, Rededication of Lives 89, Our Servicemen 89, Letters of
Encouragement 90, The Lord's Prayer in Korea 90
Ivins, Elder Antoine R 52
Visit to Canadian Mission 52, Need for Faith 53, Results of Coopera-
tion 54, Improvements Noted 54, Strive for Perfection 55
Kimball, Elder Spencer W. 63
Prayers for Lamanites 63, Plan Devised by the Lord 64, Purposes to be
Fulfilled 64, Work Commenced 65, Lamanite Membership 66, Early
Brethren Quoted 67, History of Lamanite Work 68, Our Responsi-
bility 69
Kirkham, Elder Oscar A. 31
Much Given and Expected 32, Baptism of Karl G. Maeser 32, Glory
of the Gospel 32, Spirit of American Youth 33, Service of Missionaries
33, Accept Opportunities 34
Lee, Elder Harold B 129
Influence of President Richards 129, False Prophets to Deceive 129,
Concern of Missionary 129, Criticism of Authorities 130, Divine Ap-
pointment of Leaders 130, Personal Testimony 131
Merrill, Elder Joseph F 120
Cause of Troublous Conditions 120, Law of Cause and Effect 120,
Religion a Way of Life 121, Repentance Needed 121, Cause of
Troubles 122, Wage and Price Increases 123, Inflation Hurts Millions
123, Taft-Hartley Law 124, Labor Union Bosses 124, Price Increases
Unwarranted 125, Live the Golden Rule 125, Testimony 125
Moyle, Elder Henry D. 92
Army of Righteousness 92, What is Important 92, Religion, Morality
Necessary 93, Organizations Spring Up 94, Instil Faith, Devotion 95,
Righteousness in Office 95, Exercise Franchise Intelligently 96
Muir, Elder Leo J 76
McConkie, Elder Bruce R 13
A Covenant People 13, Alma's Explanation 14, The Lord's Part 14,
Renewing of Covenant 14, Fulness of Blessings 15, Baptism a Gate 16,
Covenants to be Kept 16, Blessings to Follow 17
McKay, President David 0 51, 77, 78, 83
McKay, President David 0 108
Text 108, Path to Knowledge 108, Quests Determine Successes 108,
The All-Important Quest 109, How We May Know God 109, His
Will 109, Joy Follows Obedience 110, Life's Great Exemplar 111,
Supreme in Character 111, Priesthood Means Service 112, "Do His
Will" 112
INDEX
191
McKay, President David O. 162
Evidences of Progress 162, Need of Reverence 162, Overcome Evil
Tendencies 163, A Divine Attribute 163, Reverence Defined 163, Order
in Classrooms 164, Self-Control Exemplified 164, To Begin in Child-
hood 165, Rights of Others 165, Extract from Letter 166, Irreverence
in Services 167, Improvement Noted 167, Elders' Example Followed
167, Reverence Enjoined 168
Petersen, Elder Mark E. 38
President George F. Richards 38, Story of a Friend 38
Presentation of Authorities 83
Priesthood Meeting, General 161
Richards, Bishop LeGrand 149
Appreciation of Father 149, Faith Commended 150, Sacrifices of
Saints 150, Spirit of Darkness 151, Lord's Spirit Withdrawn 152,
Meaning of Religion 152, Added Upon 153, The Rich Man and La-
zarus 153
Romney, Elder Marion G. 126
Teachings Not New 126, Build-Up of Spirits 126, Welfare Work 127,
1951 Welfare Budget 127, Not a Dole 128, Principle of the Fast 128
Second Day — Morning Meeting 51
Second Day — Afternoon Meeting 78
Smith, Elder Eldred G 55
Pray to Father 56, Be in Tune 56, Sincerity of Children 57, Family
Prayer 57
Smith, Elder E. Wesley 47
Smith, President George Albert
3, 27, 107, 119, 132, 134, 138, 149, 160, 161
Smith, President George Albert 4
Welcome in Apia 4, Brethren Who Have Gone 5, Joy of Conference
Meetings 5, Observance of Commandments 5, Faith Grows with Right-
eousness 6, Political Campaign 6, Constitution of the United States
7, Observance of Ten Commandments 7, Seek the Lord 8, Hawaiian
Centennial 8, Gospel for All People 8, Spirit of Prayer and Grati-
tude 9
Smith, President George Albert 154
Comforts and Blessings 155, Divine Mission of Jesus Christ 155, The
Resurrection 156, Visit to Other Sheep 157, Experiences of Joseph
Smith 157, Additional Light 158, Inspiration of Almighty 158, Obe-
dience Brings Blessings 159, Plans and Accomplishments 159
Smith, President George Albert 172
Growth of Church 173, Power of the Priesthood 173, The Voice of
Warning 174, Gospel to be Preached 174, Visit to Albany 175, Call
from Governor 175, Visit at Governor's Mansion 176, Discussion of
World War I 176, Subsequent Meeting with Missionary 177, Oppor-
tunities to Teach Gospel 178, Friendliness Experienced 178, Responsi-
bility to Teach Gospel 179, Visit of Railroad President 179, Priesthood
Meeting a Delight 180, Experiences of Noah and Abraham 180,
Condition of America 180, Disbelief of World 181, Set Homes in
192 INDEX
Order 181, Waiting Upon the Lord 181, Gratitude for Companion-
ship 182, Blessings Asked 182
Smith, Elder Glenn G 45
Smith, Elder Joseph Fielding 9
Lamb's Book of Life 10, World Rejects Blessings 10, Advantages En-
joyed 11, The Vision 11, Book of Mormon 12, Covenant at Baptism
12, Power to Reach Members 12
Sonne, Elder Alma 135
Expansion of Church 135, World Attitude Changing 135, Articles
of Faith 136, Reaction to Tracts 136, Explanation of Joseph Smith 137
Stapley, Elder Delbert Leon 97
Love for Brethren 97, Call to the Council 97, Appreciation of Wife
98, Blessing Fulfilled 98
Sustaining of General Authorities and Officers 83
Tabernacle Choir and Organ Broadcast 105
Third Day — Morning Meeting 104
Third Day — Afternoon Meeting 133
Widtsoe, Elder John A. 34
Year of Anniversaries 34, Scandinavian Celebration 35, Gospel
Changes Men 35, Greetings from European Saints 36, Meeting in
Oslo 36, Worldwide Message 37, We Have the Truth 37
Widtsoe, Elder John A. (Church of the Air) 183
Wirthlin, Elder Joseph L 17
Paul's Admonition 18, Faith of Young People 18, Faith of Serviceman
19, Day of Pentecost 19, Spirit of Testimony 20, Aaronic Priesthood
Program 20, Auxiliary Organizations 21, Boy Scout Program 21,
Missionaries 22, Support of Youth 22
Young, Elder Clifford E. 29
Mormon Church a Challenge 29, President Clark's Book 30, Wit-
nesses of the Truth 30, Constant Service Required 31.
Young, Elder Levi Edgar 113
Testimonies of Church Members 113, A Model City 113, Heritage of
American Indian 114, High Regard for Youth 114, Mormon Taber-
nacle 115, World-Famed Organ 115, Statue of Moroni 116, Accom-
plishments of Pioneers 116, Music and Drama 117, Love for Beauty
and Truth 118, Appreciation of Ideals 118.
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